My Life as a Teenage Autobot
by Corsair5587
Summary: When Jenny winds up in the world of Transformers Prime, she'll meet new friends, confront new challenges and try to find a way home. Transformers is owned by Hasbro and My Life as a Teenage Robot is owned by Rob Renzetti.
1. Chapter 1 Arrival

**A/N: **Before I start this, there are a few things you should know. The Jenny in this story is not in her television appearance. It is a Mark 2 version of her design. Basically she looks like a human and has white skin, light blue eyes and hair and looks like AnnaSophia Robb.

_**My Life as a Teenage Autobot**_

**Chapter 1: Arrival**

"XJ9, can you come here please?" Dr. Wakeman asked. "Sure thing, Mom." XJ9 or Jenny, as she prefers to be called, answered. Jenny wore a knee length, light blue skirt, a short sleeve shirt, and had her hair up in her signature pigtails. "What is it?" Jenny asked as she observed her mother's newest invention. "A ground portal. It will allow the user to go anywhere on Earth in mere seconds. I need you to test it." Dr. Wakeman explained.

"Sure." Jenny replied. Dr. Wakeman activated the portal and set the coordinates for Brad Karbunkle's house. Jenny stepped into the swirling vortex, absolutely mesmerized by the colors whirling around her.

"XJ9! Come back now!" Dr. Wakeman cried. "The vortex is destabilizing!" Jenny turned around and started running but something exploded and hurled her out the opposite end of the vortex. Jenny landed face first with a thud on a desert.

She got up and was able to see the portal close. "Shoot." She said.

(Que Transformers: Prime Theme)

Jenny walked across the desert until she came across the mangled remains of what looked like a starship. The Cybertronian lettering on the hull red: The Harbinger. Inside the ship, Starscream was looking at a computer monitor.

"A ground bridge?" the former Decepticon wondered. He decided to check it out.

As Jenny neared the Harbinger its occupant flew out, transformed into its bipedal guise, and landed squarely in front of her.

Jenny used her thrusters to hover at eye level with Starscream. "Who might you be?" Starscream questioned. "Jenny." She answered. "What's your name?" The Decepticon bowed and said, "Starscream."

Jenny eyed Starscream skeptically. "Something the matter my dear?" Starscream asked. "Its just that all of the bad guys I've known have red eyes like yours." Starscream looked genuinely hurt. "Jenny, I assure you that I am neutral." He said.

"Fair enough." Jenny replied. She turned around and started to hover away from Starscream. He activated his laser and pointed it at Jenny's back. Jenny heard this and whirled around. Starscream fired a shot. In turn, Jenny raised a force field around herself. The laser shattered the field but did not damage Jenny. The robot girl drew her blaster and fired several shots at her attacker but to no avail.

"That tickles." Starscream taunted. Jenny put on a determined face and flew straight at Starscream. She threw several punches and kicks but the larger bot blocked all of them.

Starscream drew his claws and thrust them into Jenny's stomach. "Agh!" Jenny screamed. The Decepticon fired one of his arm missiles into Jenny's chest. She flew back fifty yards while skipping off of the desert floor.

Oil dripped from Jenny's mouth and stomach. Her servos ached as she tried to stand. Starscream walked slowly toward her.

"This is the end for you my dear." Starscream boasted. Jenny fell back to the ground, unable to get up.

As Starscream aimed his remaining missile, a ground bride opened up. Out of it came Bulkhead, Arcee, Bumblebee, and Optimus Prime. "Autobots!" Starscream exclaimed. He quicky transformed into his jet mode and fled amidst a flurry of laser fire.

The Autobots stopped firing and Optimus looked at Jenny. The Autobot leader activated his comm link. "Ratchet, prepare sickbay. We have someone in need of your medical expertise.


	2. Chapter 2 Meet the Autobots

**A/N: **I apologize for not updating in a while. I'm taking a summer class at a community college and I just came back from a wedding. I will update more in the future. Without further ado, I give you Chapter 2.

_**My Life as an Autobot**_

**Chapter 2: Meet the Autobots **

Team Prime walked through the ground bridge and into the silo with one very out of place and unconscious extra being. Optimus carried Jenny in his right palm. "So, Optimus who is this being I have to…" Ratchet's voice trailed off.

"What in the Allspark?" Ratchet gasped. "She tried takin' on Starscream." Bulkhead explained "Left her pretty messed up too." Optimus handed Jenny to Ratchet will gentleness uncharacteristic of a machine. In turn, Ratchet gently placed her on the operating table, oil still flowing from her wounds.

None of the Autobots had ever seen anything like Jenny before. "_So human but, at the same time, so robotic," _Ratchet thought.

"Optimus," Ratchet began. "I have next to no knowledge of her anatomy. I could do more harm than good." The Prime placed his hand on the medic's shoulder. "I have faith in you, old friend." Optimus encouraged. The Autobot leader's confidence must have rubbed off on Ratchet because he suddenly seemed determined.

"I'll do what I can." Ratchet in a very determined tone of voice.

Ratchet spent nearly all night and most of the next morning analyzing and repairing Jenny. He was most surprised at the sophistication of her design and the efficiency of her power system, which was a rechargeable power cell located where a human heart would be. Finally at 7:46 AM MST (Mountain Standard Time since the silo is in Nevada) Ratchet finished the repairs and plugged Jenny's "heart" into a power generator just as the rest of Team Prime arrived along with their human companions.

Jack, Miko, and Raph exited Arcee, Bulkhead, and Bumblebee, respectively while the. The Autobots then took their bipedal forms. "Hey, Ratchet, whatcha working on? Is a secret weapon to take down Megatron?" Miko asked. Ratchet said nothing as he was focused on checking Jenny's vital signs with his scanner.

"Ratchet?" Jack asked. "Mm, what? Oh sorry. I was up all night fixing…" Ratchet searched for the appropriate words. "Fixing what?" Raph asked. Before Raph could answer, Bumblebee let off a series of beeps, whirs, and buzzes, explain the events of the previous day.

"All by herself?" Raph asked in shock. Bumblebee nodded. "The Autobots discovered a robot damaged by Starscream in a desert yesterday, and apparently Ratchet just fixed her." Raph explained.

"Well, it's no secret _now_." Ratchet growled while eying Bee. "Is she Cybertronian?" Jack asked. Optimus walked in just then. "No, Jack. While advanced in design, she is definitely not from Cybertron." The Prime answered.

The Autobots lifted their human friends so that they could see Jenny. She rested peacefully on the operating table, her heat ventilation system creating the illusion of breathing. "She's a robot?" Miko inquired, unimpressed. "We couldn't believe it either." Arcee answered.

"Aaggh!" Jenny screamed as she snapped into an upright position. She immediately removed the power cable from her "heart" and activated her forearm- based blasters. "Who are you, where am I… and how did I get fixed?" She asked noting that she felt good as new.

"We mean you no harm. But to answer your questions, we are Autonomous Robotic Beings from the Planet Cybertron." Optimus explained. Jenny deactivated her weapons and cocked her head to the left. "Autobots for short." Arcee added. "_Something about her…" _Jenny thought.

"I am Optimus Prime, leader of the Autobots." The tall red and blue robot said. "I'm Ratchet, the team medic." The red and white robot introduced. "Bulkhead, the muscle." The bulky green robot bellowed. "I'm Arcee." The shorter blue robot greeted. Jenny turned her head toward the yellow robot who possessed what looked like wings on his back. "What about you?" Jenny wondered.

The robot warbled and buzzed his response. "Bumblebee." Jenny repeated, smiling.

The children introduced themselves similarly. "_Jack seems sweet…"_ Jenny thought. "Alright, you know who we are now start telling us who you are." Miko demanded. "Miko!" Bulkhead scolded. "She could be a Con spy, Bulk!" she countered.

"Yeah, I'm right here you know." Jenny reminded Miko. "Anyway, my official name is XJ9, but I'd prefer that you call me Jenny or Jen."

"Who built you, Jenny?" Ratchet asked. "A human scientist named Noreen Wakeman. I consider her my mother."

"Now take us through how you met Starscream." Optimus requested. Jenny explained how she was helping her mom test the Ground Portal. "That's just like a ground bridge." Arcee realized. "The vortex destabilized and threw me out the other end. Starscream started the fight and was about to finish me off when you showed up. I can't remember anything past that." Jenny finished.

Ratchet gave Optimus a look. "No need to put it off any longer." Optimus decided. "Put what off any longer?" Jenny asked sounding suspicious.

"There's no easy way to put this, but the destabilization that sent you here put you in a different dimension." Ratchet explained.

Jenny's eyes widened. "What?" she gasped. "But, I have to get home, my city could be under attack right now!" Jenny exclaimed.

"You protect your home." Optimus realized. Jenny flew straight up to his face. "It's only the reason I was built!" She snapped. "Jenny, calm down, I'm sure Ratchet will figure out a way to get you home." Jack assured. "Indeed. And until that time I have an offer. I humbly ask that you aid us in keeping our world safe." Optimus requested.

"That's a very kind offer but, in case you didn't notice, I almost got myself killed fighting Starscream." Jenny chided.

"That's why I added an auxiliary power system that uses Energon, our lifeblood, into your existing structure." Ratchet.

Jenny switched to this power system and felt a sudden surge of energy. Her irises started glowing . "Whoa. I feel like I could take all of you right now."

"Theoretically it should give you the strength you need to survive in our world." Ratchet assured. "One more thing. That Starscream guy could turn into a jet. Can you guys transform like that?" Jenny wondered.

Rather than tell her, the Autobots showed her. One by one they became a red and blue semi- truck, an ambulance, a green SUV, a blue Suzuki motorcycle, and a Yellow sports car with two black stripes.

Jenny continued to hover in the air, speechless. "Have you made your decision?" Optimus asked. "Yes Optimus. I'll do it. I'll be an Autobot." She accepted.

"_This might not be so bad after all."_

**A/N: **This is a long chapter by my standards but I figure you deserve it since I haven't updated for a while. I appreciate your support and hope you enjoy this chapter.


	3. Chapter 3 Suprise Inspection

_**My Life as a Teenage Autobot**_

**Chapter Three:**__**Surprise Inspection**

Ratchet was finishing up Jenny's final modification; an Autobot emblem embedded just above her right elbow. "There. All finished." The medic said. Jenny took a moment to admire the emblem. "I guess it's official now." Jenny joked.

_*Beep, Beep, Beep*_ the computer chimed. "Prime?"The agent on the screen asked. "I'll be right back." Ratchet whispered to a confused Jenny. "My apologies, Agent Fowler, Optimus and the others are still on patrol duty." Ratchet reported.

Fowler frowned. "Tell him I'll be at the silo at 1800 (6:00 PM) for a surprise inspection." He ordered. "It's not much of a surprise if you tell them when you're showing up." Jenny observed. "Stay put…" Ratchet whispered through his teeth. "We might as well tell him now Ratch," Jenny insisted while she hovered up to the monitor so Fowler could see her.

"Who in the name of Thomas Jefferson is that?" Fowler questioned. "And why does she look like an Anime character my niece watches?"

"Nice to meet you too Agent Fowler. My name is Jenny and I'm from another dimension." Ratchet shifted his gaze from Jenny to Agent Fowler. "I need to talk to Prime alone when he gets back. Fowler out." The agent growled.

Ratchet glared at the robot girl. "What, I can't say hello?" Jenny asked. Before Ratchet could respond the rest of the Autobots returned from their patrol and shifted into their robot modes. "Hey guys," Jenny greeted, "find anything?" Optimus shook his head. "We picked up no Decepticon or MECH activity in the area." The Prime reported.

"Yes, well, Agent Fowler is coming for a surprise inspection in four hours." Ratchet announced. "How can it be a surprise if we know when he's coming?" Bulkhead wondered. "See?" Jenny teased Ratchet.

"_Anyway, _Agent Fowler now knows about Jenny." Ratchet informed Optimus. "It was her choice to tell him and I'm sure he'll keep the secret." Optimus assured.

_Two Hours Later…_

The Autobots turned toward the elevator and waited for Agent Fowler to step out. Finally he arrived and walked straight toward Optimus. He took a quick look around and began to speak. "Prime, as far as I'm concerned, the base is in good shape. All I want now is to talk to you about Jenny alone."

Optimus agreed and walked toward the back of the base with Agent Fowler. "Prime, I don't mean to insult your judgment, but Jenny could be dangerous." The agent suggested. "She poses no harm to any human Agent Fowler. However she will be kept under constant supervision." Fowler still wasn't entirely sure about the whole thing, but he knew Optimus well enough to know that the bot kept his word.

"Fine," Fowler grumbled, "but if she blows your cover, there's nothing I can do." With that Agent Fowler left.

_Meanwhile on the Nemesis _

Soundwave had just finished playing an audio recording from the fight between Starscream and Jenny to Megatron. "Hmm…" The Decepticon Leader wondered aloud. "Perhaps she could be of use to us if given the proper… _modifications._" Megatron thought.


	4. Chapter 4 Roll Out

_**My Life as a Teenage Autobot**_

**Chapter 4: Roll Out**

It was 7:32 PM MST at the silo. Jenny sat on top of the structure looking at the stars and moon. A sudden sense of sadness and loneliness overcame her. "_I miss Mom, and Brad, and Tuck, and even Sheldon." _She thought while a drop of antifreeze flowed from her right eye.

Jenny was startled by Optimus saying "I've always admired Earth's moon. So peaceful." Jenny wiped away her "tear" and turned toward the metal giant. "I miss everyone. My friends, my family. I would give anything to see them again."

Optimus eyed the girl with sympathy and lowered his head. "I understand." He soothed. "You do?" Jenny asked. "I've not spoken with many of my Cybertronian brethren since the War. Some are gone forever." Optimus confided in a solemn tone.

"I'm… sorry." Jenny said knowing it wasn't enough. "It is best not to dwell on friends we have lost. Rather, we should keep their lives in our memories and look toward the future." The Autobot advised.

"Can I tell you something?" Jenny asked. "Of course." Optimus replied. "Thank you. For everything. Not many would have taken in someone like me." Jenny thanked.

Optimus was about to answer, but Ratchet called him on his comm-link. "Optimus, we're ready to brief Jenny on the enemies she'll encounter in the field." The medic reported. "Understood." Optimus acknowledged.

Optimus and Jenny took the elevator down to the communications hub where Ratchet had prepared a presentation of the different kinds of Decepticons. "Ratchet you may begin." Optimus said.

Ratchet pressed some buttons on his keyboard and the image of a black and purple robot appeared on the center screen. "This is a Vehicon," Ratchet began, "The backbone of the Decepticon Army. Though slow witted they are dangerous in large groups and completely docile. They come in car and jet types."

Ratchet pressed a button and a bug like robot displayed. "This is an Insecticon, the heavy hitters of the Decepticons. You are strongly advised to fight them at long range as their claws and heavy armor prove troublesome in close quarters.

The image changed to a red robot with a smirk on his face. "This is Knockout, the Decepticon medic."Ratchet explained. "His experiments serve to further Decepticon science and to satisfy his ghoulish curiosity. His vehicle mode is an Aston Martin DB9."

Next was a blue and yellow robot with a sword and cannon. "This is Dreadwing, the Decepticon second in command and Air Commander. He is fiercely loyal to the Decepticon cause and transforms into an F-35B." Ratchet informed.

Then a robot with no facial features appeared. "This is Soundwave. He is the chief intelligence officer of the Decepticons. Ironically he chooses not to speak. His arsenal consists of sonic weapons and a miniature drone known as Laserbeak." Ratchet explained.

"You already know the rouge Decepticon, Starscream." Ratchet presumed.

The final image appeared on the screen. It was big, silver, red- eyed, and heavily armed with a giant arm cannon. "This is Megatron, leader of the Decepticons. His ambition and ruthlessness know no bounds. He was raised in gladiatorial combat so extreme caution is advised." Ratchet continued.

"So that's all huh?" Jenny asked nervously. "No. We have one other enemy. A terrorist organization named MECH. They hunt down Cybertonians and use them for parts so they can build a transforming army." Ratchet finished.

Jenny was really starting to wonder if joining the Autobots was the best idea. As if to read her thoughts Bulkhead chimed in, "Don't worry, Jen, we've got your back." Bumblebee nodded and buzzed in agreement. "Indeed." Optimus agreed. "And with your flight capabilities we will finally have an edge over the Decepticon Air Force."

Just then an Autobot Iacon beacon symbol appeared on the computer map. "Looks like Megatron is in the Andes Mountain Range in Chile." Ratchet reported. "It stands to reason that they found another Iacon relic." Optimus concluded.

"Well Jenny, this is your first mission as an Autobot." Arcee observed. "Try to keep up." The Cybertronian teased. "I don't _have _to try Arcee." Jenny retorted.

"Enough, both of you!" Ratchet scolded as he opened the Ground Bridge. "Autobots, transform and roll out!" Optimus ordered. The Autobots shifted into vehicle mode (save for Jenny who activated her flight thrusters) and entered the Ground Bridge vortex.

When they exited they arrived on a ledge in the Andes Mountains. The Autobots that could transform shifted into robot mode and Jenny gently landed "Ah, bienvenido a Chile mis amigos." she said. "You're fluent in Spanish?" Arcee realized. "I'm fluent in all of Earth's languages." Jenny explained.

Optimus produced a scanner and led the Autobots toward the Iacon beacon. Unfortunately, a few moments later, the beacon's signal disappeared. "The Decepticons deactivated the beacon," Optimus observed, "but I've marked the location."

Eventually the Autobots arrived at the location to find themselves outnumbered three to one. There were ten Ground Vehicons guarding the entrance to a tunnel in the side of a mountain and five Vehicon Flyers hovering above them. The group of Decepticons was 500 yards away.

"Jenny, distract the Vehicon Flyers, we'll take the others." Optimus advised Jenny switched to her energon power supply and bolted in to the air toward the Vehicons. She stretched her arms out and aimed herself at a Vehicon Flyer from the side. She punched straight through the alien metal. The falling Decepticon crushed two Ground Vehicons before exploding.

The other Flyers set off on a pursuit course for Jenny. "Catch me if you can!" she boasted. Optimus and the other Autobots opened fire with their laser weapons knocking out two more Vehicons. As the Vehicons returned fire, the Autobot charged them, laser guns blazing. One of the Vehicons transformed into car-mode and sped down the tunnel. "He's gonna warn Megatron!" Bulkhead realized.

The Autobots shifted into vehicle mode and pursued the lone Vehicon. Meanwhile Jenny continued her dogfight. She swerved rolled and looped to dodge the barrage of fire they sent at her. Jenny maneuvered to the rear of one and downed it with her arm blaster. She swerved left and sent another down with a blast from her palm laser. Another two were brought down by four of her homing missiles. Finally she flew up to the last one, landed on it, and cut an "x" shape in it with her plasma sword. The Vehicon exploded a few seconds after she jumped off and headed toward the other Autobots.

"Prime, its Jenny. All Flyers destroyed. I'm headed for your location." She reported. "Understood. We're pursuing a Vehicon into the tunnel." Optimus replied.

Jenny flew down the tunnel to catch up to Optimus. He and the Autobots followed the Vehicon into a large open area in the cave. In the center lay a giant sphere of Cybertronian origin. Standing next to it were Megatron and Knockout.

The Vehicon and the Autobots took their robot modes as they approached the sphere. Megatron turned to greet them as the activated their weapons. "Greetings Optimus. You're just in time to reunite with an old adversary from the war. Knockout opened the sphere. Inside was not an Autobot relic or a weapon of mass destruction but something far worse. A tall purple robot with a single yellow eye and a cannon for a right arm emerged from his stasis in the sphere.

"It can't be." Arcee gasped. "What? What is it?" Ratchet asked. "Shockwave." Optimus realized.


	5. Chapter 5 The Return of Shockwave

_**My Life as a Teenage Autobot**_

**Chapter 5: The Return of Shockwave**

"By the Allspark!" Ratchet gasped.

Confusion filled Arcee's thoughts. "I thought he died in the Space Bridge after I shot him." Arcee said finally, her voice shaky. Shockwave eyed the Autobots with contempt. "Ah, yes." The Decpeticon remembered. His voice bared an uncanny resemblance to Corey Burton's. "You ruined my Space Bridge, shot me in the optic, and left me for scrap when it collapsed."

"You did what?" Bulkhead asked with a mixture of surprise and approval. "Never mind that now, Bulkhead." Optimus cut in. More Vehicons entered the cave and opened fire. The Autobot leader calculated furiously while dodging shots and returning the Decepticons' fire. "Bzzzz whhr bleep?" Bumblebee warbled.

"Ratchet, we need a Bridge now!" Optimus yelled. "What?" Jenny asked in bewilderment after smashing two Vehicons together. "We are too outnumbered." Optimus replied. A swirling green vortex opened up behind Optimus. One by one Arcee Bulkhead and Bumblebee retreated back to the silo.

Optimus looked over at Jenny, who just destroyed two Vehicons with a mace weapon and took down a third with a sticky green slime. "Jenny, there isn't much time." Optimus reminded. He deflected two laser shots with his sword and fired his Ion Cannon at Megatron. "You first Prime." She answered. "It is my responsibility to keep you safe Jenny. I cannot do that if you no longer function." Optimus responded. Megatron laughed at their exchange.

"You should listen to your new pet Optimus. After all, without you this world would be all mine." Megatron taunted while firing his fusion cannon. "I grow tired of this. May I destroy them my liege?" Shockwave asked. "Together my loyal compatriot." Megatron declared.

Shockwave charged his weapon. Raw energon built up in its capacitors until Shockwave released it in a flash of green light. The laser hurtled toward Optimus. Jenny instinctively hurled herself in front of him and activated her energy shield. The energon strengthened shield successfully blocked Shockwave's attack.

Jenny kept the shield up to block laser fire from Megatron and the remaining Vehicons. "Go Optimus, I'll be fine!" Jenny assured. The Autobot leader noticed that the shield started to weaken from the barrage. "Go!" Jenny repeated. Reluctantly, Optimus fired one last shot and retreated back through the Ground Bridge. When he appeared in the silo, Ratchet immediately gave him a worried look. "Where's Jenny?" he wondered. "Still fighting Megatron and Shockwave." Optimus answered.

All of the Autobots eyed their leader with shock. "You left her alone with Shockwave and Megatron?!" Ratchet asked, completely baffled that Optimus abandoned a fellow Autobot. "She won't last two cycles by herself!" Bulkhead concurred. "I do not think Jenny would allow me go first if she did not possess a way out herself." Optimus countered.

Meanwhile, back in the cave, Jenny's shield still held but barely. _Okay, I think I've waited long enough._ She thought. Jenny put more power into the shield and thrust her arms out. The shield exploded outward at incredible speed. "Incoming!" Knockout yelled. The blast knocked the Decepticons off their feet and slammed them into the cave walls before dissipating.

Finally Jenny flew back through the Ground Bridge and into the silo. Ratchet let out a sigh of relief as he pulled the lever that closed the Bridge. "Beep buzz bleep?" Bumblebee asked in astonishment. "But, how?" Bulkhead wondered. Jenny blushed. "Aw, just your standard plasma shield with a boost from some energon." She explained.

"Well done Jenny." Optimus congratulated. "Yes we're all glad Jenny is safe. But we have a new problem. With Shockwave reanimated Megatron may be able to build his own weapons of mass destruction." Ratchet reminded. "Is that true Optimus?" Jenny questioned. "Yes." Optimus began in a somber voice. "During the War for Cybertron, Shockwave built several terrible weapons for Megatron. Few of them failed to accomplish their intended task."

Jenny flew to eye level with the Autobot leader. "Don't worry Optimus. You have one thing here that you didn't have on Cybertron: Me. And I won't let anyone harm you or this Earth." she promised. "I like your attitude Jen." Bulkhead praised.

**Later that night…**

Normally, Jenny could enter sleep mode on any surface in any orientation. Tonight, however, something made the adolescent automaton restless. Her blacked out HUD read.

INCOMING TRANSMISSION

PICK UP? Y/N

Y

A faint voice broadcast inside Jenny's mind. "XJ9… all fine… bridge down…" Jenny stirred in her sleep mode. New words appeared on her HUD.

INITIATE SIGNAL TRACE

"… give… worried…"

LOSING SIGNAL ADJUSTING RECEIVER

TRACE FAILED

SIGNAL LOST

Jenny woke with a start. "Mom?" she wondered.

**Meanwhile on the Nemesis…**

Megatron stood on the bridge of his warship in deep thought. _Such great power for such a small bot. Definitely not Cybertronian in make, but I could still detect an energon signal from her. I must find her."_

The Decepticon leader turned toward his Intelligence Officer, Soundwave. "Soundwave, I want you to research everyone on Earth with the name of Jenny." Soundwave stood motionless and silent awaiting further orders. "I'm looking for an adolescent female, six feet in height. That is all." Megatron finished. Soundwave gave a small nod and began searching Earth's data bases.

Megatron then turned and walked toward the medical bay where Shockwave underwent diagnostics. "Knockout, Breakdown, how is he?" Breakdown stopped polishing Shockwave's foot and turned toward his master. "The damage from the blast was superficial my lord." Breakdown reported. "He should be ready for full time duty by tomorrow." Knockout added.

Megatron smiled. "Indeed, the return of Shockwave will be hailed as a great milestone on the road to crushing the Autobots." Megatron mused. Shockwave woke. "My liege?" Megatron turned to face him. "I never properly thanked you for rescuing me." Shockwave said. "Get some rest Shockwave." Megatron answered. _Yes, our victory is that much closer._ Megatron thought.

**A/N: **I apologize for the short chapters. I'll try to make them longer. Anyway, please tell me what you think of my interpretation of Shockwave and the story so far. Chapter 6 will be up next Saturday.


	6. Chapter 6 Secret Restoration

_**My Life as a Teenage Autobot**_

**Chapter 6: Secret Restoration**

The Nemesis powered away from Earth with its ten sub light engines running at full speed. Megatron stood on the bridge with Soundwave to monitor the crew. Shockwave walked in from behind them. "Ah Shockwave. How was your stasis?" Megatron asked. "Satisfactory my liege." Shockwave noted that the Nemesis' heading pointed away from Earth.

"Why are we going away from Earth? Would it not be logical to remain and track down the Autobots?" Shockwave asked. "Tempting. However, I found something on Cybertron that will ensure us total victory." Megatron replied. "You built another Space Bridge." Shockwave realized.

Megatron nodded. "Behind Earth's moon. That way, no humans can detect it." Soon, the moon came into view. The Nemesis reached the dark side where the bridge sat floating. "Soundwave, activate the Space Bridge. Target: Cybertron." Megatron ordered. Soundwave nodded and input the coordinates. The bridge vortex whirled to life.

When the Nemesis came through the bridge it appeared on the night side of Cybertron. There lay thousands upon thousands of dead soldiers; Autobot and Decepticon alike. The Nemesis approached what looked like a wrecked city, but upon closer inspection Shockwave realized what it was. "Trypticon." The scientist stated.

"Correct as usual Shockwave." Megatron praised. "You are to begin restoring him immediately. I will give you whatever assistance you may require." The Decepticon leader assured. "Thank you my liege. I shall require a team of your best medics and technicians." Shockwave requested. "Consider it done." Megatron answered.

With the crew and supplies given to him, Shockwave performed several diagnostics on Trypticon's body. "I have good news, my liege." Shockwave announced. "Trypticon is only in deep stasis. With sufficient time and energon I should have him online again in a month."

An evil grin spread across Megatron's face. "Excellent." He replied. "My liege, there is one complication. It appears that Trypticon's main weapon got destroyed in battle and requires a replacement." Shockwave said. "Leave that to me." Megatron replied.

Faithful that Shockwave could handle himself on Cybertron, Megatron returned to Earth aboard the Nemesis. "Soundwave, have you found anything?" Megatron required. The intel officer displayed the results of his search for Jenny. "NO RESULTS" appeared on his visor. Megatron frowned. "Alright what about a replacement weapon for Trypticon?" The Decepticon Leader wondered. The image on Soundwave's visor changed and displayed a picture from a top secret Pentagon database. "Perfect." Megatron declared.

**Back at the Autobot Base…**

Jenny woke with a start. For the past week her mom sent messages to her during her sleep. Unfortunately, the signal cut out before the trace could pinpoint the signal. "Welcome back to the land of moving parts." Bulkhead greeted. "'Morning Bulk." Jenny replied. "Optimus wanted me to check on you. Said you looked restless." Bulkhead said. "I guess I'm just a little homesick." She answered. The gentle giant knelt down to meet Jenny at eye level. "Don't worry. We're gonna get you home whatever it takes." Bulkhead promised.

Jenny perked up a bit and decided to talk to Bulkhead some more. "So Bulkhead, what did you do before you came to Earth?" she wondered. "Back on Cybertron, I was a construction worker. There was nothing I couldn't build or demolish. When war broke out, I enlisted immediately. At first, I was assigned to the Engineering Corps. There I built defenses and fortifications for the other troops. That is until I met Ultra Magnus. He was so impressed with my work that he offered me a position in his special unit: The Wreckers. We took on the toughest missions behind enemy lines. Whenever things looked bleak, _we_ could turn it around."

Bulkhead appeared somber all of a sudden. Recalling what happened next never got easier no matter how many times he told his story. "Unfortunately, our efforts weren't enough. With each passing day Megatron controlled more and more of Cybertron until his forces pushed us back to Iacon. There, I met Ultra Magnus' brother Optimus Prime. He tasked us with finishing construction of the Ark, a ship to carry the last Autobots away from Cybertron. By then the Wreckers lost half their members either to Decepticon fire or evacuation. In fact, Wheeljack was the first to leave. But we finished the Ark just in time to evacuate."

**Flashback to Cybertron…**

"Finally, the Ark's ready." Bulkhead sighed. Ultra Magnus contacted his brother. "Optimus, the Ark is finished; we are awaiting your arrival." "Understood Ultra Magnus, we're on our way." Optimus responded. Soon Optimus, Bumblebee, Mirage, Ratchet, Ironhide, Hound, Jazz, Sideswipe, and Jetfire arrived at the launch pad. As they boarded the Ark, Bulkhead picked up something on his scanner. "Decepticons incoming!" he exclaimed. "Optimus, Bulkhead and I will hold them off until everyone boards." Ultra Magnus proposed. "Good luck brother." Optimus replied. In a flurry of fists and laser fire, Ultra Magnus and Bulkhead fought valiantly against the Decepticon invaders. After half an hour Optimus reported "Everyone is on board. Hurry!"

Bulkhead and Ultra Magnus backed up toward the Ark when the latter suddenly took a hit to the chest. "Ultra Magnus!" Bulkhead yelled. He picked up his leader and dragged him into the Ark while firing with his free arm cannon. The doors shut and the Ark lifted off. Venting heavily, Bulkhead activated his comm. "Bulkhead to bridge, I need a medic. Ultra Magnus took a pretty bad hit." Optimus' spark lurched. "Ratchet, get Ultra Magnus to sick bay immediately!" Optimus ordered. "Hang in there Magnus." Bulkhead encouraged.

Ratchet took the Wrecker leader to sick bay and examined him. "It doesn't look good Optimus. Several of his vital systems are damaged beyond repair. "Optimus looked down. " I… understand." He said. "I'll leave you to say your goodbyes." Ratchet said as he left the room. "Sorry it had to be this way Optimus." Ultra Magnus apologized. "It is alright brother. You sacrificed yourself so that we may survive." Optimus replied. "Goodbye Optimus. 'Till all are one." Ultra Magnus' optics darkened meaning that his end came.

The Autobots loaded Magnus' body into and escape pod and prepared a proper funeral. Optimus gave the eulogy "Today we have lost another valiant comrade. Ultra Magnus considered himself a simple soldier, more comfortable taking orders than giving them. However under his leadership, the Wreckers accomplished many great feats of heroism and inspired us Autobots to keep fighting. Goodbye Ultra Magnus."

Optimus launched the pod and watched it drift off into space. Later he found Bulkhead. "Bulkhead, may I talk to you?" Optimus asked. "Sure." Bulkhead answered. "Ratchet, Bumblebee, and I are going to a planet named Earth while the take the Ark to another planet where our energon is stockpiled. Would you like to come with me?" Optimus asked. Seeing as Ironhide already gave the other team muscle, Bulkhead elected to go with Optimus.

**End Flashback…**

… and that's my story." Bulkhead finished. Before Jenny could respond, the tri tone sounded and Agent Fowler appeared on the main screen. "Prime? We've got a situation." Optimus and the Autobots walked toward the communications hub. "Go ahead agent Fowler." Optimus answered. "The Cons broke into a research lab in Los Alamos in search of an experimental proton cannon. If they get away, there's no telling what kind of damage they'll do."

"Understood Agent Fowler. We will intercept." Optimus replied. "Good luck. Fowler out." Agent Fowler finished. Ratchet set the coordinates for Los Alamos and threw the activation switch. The green vortex whirled to life. "Autobots, transform and roll out." Optimus ordered.

**Los Alamos…**

Optimus saw smoke rising from the base and Vehicon flyers over head. "Jenny, establish air superiority." Optimus ordered. She nodded in acknowledgement and took off. "Everyone else, into the base!" The Autobots made their way in, grateful that Agent Fowler evacuated the staff. Suddenly, one of the walls blew open revealing Breakdown and a team of Insecticons carrying the proton cannon. The Autobots activated their laser weapons immediately. "Drop the weapon Breakdown." Bulkhead growled.

"If you say so." Breakdown quipped as he threw the cannon at Bulkhead. The Wrecker narrowly dodged the hit while the Autobots opened fire. The Decepticons fired back initiating an intense fire fight. Meanwhile Jenny's own hands were full fighting the aerial Vehicons. Two maneuvered onto her six and blasted away with their laser cannon. Jenny deployed her airbrakes which forced the Vehicons to overshoot. She drew her blasters and downed the Vehicons with a short burst.

A few minutes later, Jenny cleared the skies of Vehicons. "Optimus, I've achieved air superiority, what's your status?" she asked. "We are engaged with Breakdown and some Insecticons." Optimus reported. "Say no more, I'm on my way." Jenny answered. She could tell from the amount of laser sounds that the fight was a tough one. Jenny arrived at the Autobots' position and joined their attack.

A team of Vehicons suddenly bridged in next to the cannon. "Optimus, the Cannon!" Acree warned. Too late, Optimus turned his head to see the Vehicons pull the cannon through the bridge and into the Nemesis. Breakdown and the Decepticons bridged out as well. The Autobots deactivated their weapons. "Ratchet, give us a bridge. Be advised, the Decepticons have the cannon."

**Back at the silo…**

"They got away with the cannon?!" Fowler exclaimed. "I apologize, Agent Fowler. I take full responsibility/" Optimus apologized. "I'll let you off the hook just this once Prime, but if something like this happens again, I don't think I'll be able to convince the Pentagon to keep Team Prime active." Fowler warned. "It will not happen again." Optimus promised. "I hope so, for both of our sakes. Fowler out." The agent concluded.

"I don't get it. What would the Cons want with an Earth weapon?" Jenny wondered. "Can't they just build their own weapons?" Ratchet shook his head. "The Decepticons are known to steal Earth's technology when it suits their cause." The medic explained. "But what could they use the proton cannon for?" Jenny questioned. "We will wait and see." Optimus answered.

**Cybertron…**

"Oh yes, this will do just nicely." Shockwave observed. "I will begin installing it immediately my liege." Megatron grinned. _The Autobots will be completely unprepared for this._ He thought.

**A/N: **And so concludes chapter six. Sorry for not updating on time, I had trouble coming up with a story for this chapter and I want to start making them longer. Anyway, feel free to tell me what you think of the story so far. Thank you for reading.


	7. Chapter 7 Payback

_**My Life as a Teenage Autobot**_

**Chapter 7: Payback**

The Autobots gathered around the computer hub to receive their next mission. "Our most recent intel from the pentagon suggests that the Decepticons are staging a major mining operation in Alberta Canada." Ratchet informed. "We must get to this mine and capture or destroy it." The medic continued.

Suddenly Jenny's eyes flashed and her display read "INCOMING MESSAGE." She tried to activate her call waiting routines but something overrode them. A screen appeared on her display and began transmitting the message. Nora Wakeman's face appeared. "XJ9, if you are watching this, start the tracing the signal. I'll have to be brief as there is …." Static filled the screen for a moment. "…ference. So far no Cluster or major criminal … has taken place. I'm still working on the Bridge and once I get that done I'll need y…..dinates. XJ9, even if you can't give a direct reply, pl…. ive me a sign that you are still functional." END MESSAGE. ERROR. TRACE INCOMPLETE. UNABLE TO LOCATE SOURCE.

Jenny snapped out of her 'trance' to see the Autobots eying her with concern. "Sooo, what'd I miss?" Jenny asked gingerly. "We could ask you the same question." Arcee replied in a serious tone. "Yeah, you kinda zoned out there." Bulkhead agreed.

Jenny vented a sigh from her air filtration system. "For the past week my mom sent me messages in my sleep. I guess it was the only time when enough of my systems were off for there not to be much interference. Even then all I received were bits and pieces." She explained.

"I thought there was something besides homesickness buggin ya." said Bulkhead. "I know. I'm sorry. Anyway, Mom must have figured out a way minimize the interference, not only to get most of the message through, but to deliver it while I'm awake." Jenny finished. Ratchet turned to Optimus. "Optimus I do not think it wise to bring Jenny with you on this one." He recommended. The Autobot leader lowered his head in thought. Finally he said "I am sorry Jenny. For your safety and ours, it would be best if you remained at base under Ratchet's supervision."

"But," Jenny began to object. "I am only doing this for your well being. I promise it is only temporary." Optimus interjected. "Fine." She huffed. "Ratchet, activate the Ground Bridge." Optimus ordered. The Autobots shifted into vehicle mode and sped into the vortex. Jenny watched them with envy. _I should be with them._ She thought.

The computer's tri tone sounded and General Bryce's face appeared on the screen. "This is General Bryce of the United States Army. I have information regarding the Decepticon known as Starscream." He informed. Jenny bolted over to the computer screen. The memory of her first encounter with the silver tongued creep was still fresh in her mind.

"What have you found?" She asked in a serious tone. "Our satellites have tracked him to some abandoned mines outside Las Vegas." The General continued. "Does he pose any threat to the civilian population?" Ratchet inquired. "Negative. If anything, Starscream seems to be avoiding attention." Bryce answered. "What are his coordinates exactly?" Jenny demanded.

Ratchet knew where this was going. "Thank you General." He quickly cut in. "I'll pass this information to Optimus immediately."

"Good, I'll keep you posted. Bryce out." He concluded.

"I'm gonna go get some air," she said suddenly. She walked over to the elevator. "Come now." Ratchet scoffed. "What?" Jenny wondered innocently. "You're going to try to find Starscream. A direct violation of Optimus's order." Ratchet reminded. "Ratchet, please, I have to do this." She pleaded. "Didn't you hear General Bryce? Starscream does not pose any threat to anyone at the moment!" Ratchet exclaimed.

Jenny walked into the elevator. "And I'll make sure it stays that way." She replied in a determined tone while activating the elevator. "Oh no you won't." Ratchet countered. A few simple keyboard commands later and the elevator stopped.

"Sorry Ratchet." Jenny whispered. She activated her boosters and accelerated toward the top of the silo. She punched through the elevator shaft in a shower of twisted rock and metal and turned South East toward Las Vegas.

**An Abandoned Mine in the Outskirts of Las Vegas…**

"Grrr… That's it?" Starscream complained. "Two hours of searching and all I have to show for it is two measly energon crystals!" he lamented. He picked up the energon and sauntered toward the mine's entrance. "Perhaps I should find a different mine; one that has not been picked dry by Megatron." The Decepticon realized.

Suddenly, he heard the whines of engines followed by a soft thud just outside the mine. _Oh no. Megatron found me. But how? I've been very careful to cover my tracks. _He thought. Instead of ground shaking stomps, however, he heard sneakers against rock. _That's odd. But if Megatron didn't just land then that must mean… _"Miss me?" Jenny taunted.

"AGGGHHH!" The Decepticon screamed while flailing his arms wildly. He quickly regained his composure however. "Jenny? Is it really you?" Starscream wondered. Jenny raised her arms and charged her palm lasers. "Here's a hint." She quipped. Jenny fired and both beams slammed into Starscream's chest, hurling him out of the mine. He landed in a heap fifty yards away.

Starscream stood up and brushed himself off. "I don't know where you found your knew strength, but it won't be enough to defeat me." Starscream boasted. He activated his laser cannon and fired several shots at Jenny.

She raised her arms, creating a force field that blocked all of the Decepticon's laser fire. "What?" Starscream exclaimed. Jenny thrust her arms forward. Her force field smacked into Starscream's chest at the speed of light. Once again he flew backward.

Jenny flew over to him while drawing a large ax and Gatling gun. "Had enough?" She taunted. Starscream let out a battle cry and launched his arm missiles. Jenny avoided them with the skill and grace of a gymnast. She caught up to Starscream and swiped him with her ax, following up with a burst of laser fire.

Starscream reeled under Jenny's relentless attacks. "Alright! I'm sorry. I was wrong to hurt you like that. I thought you were an Autobot. Please don't snuff out my spark!" he pleaded. Jenny raised the ax over her head in a dramatic fashion, like an executor of the Middle Ages. Starscream clenched his eyes shut, bracing for the blow.

Just before she struck she looked into Starscream's eyes and saw all the emotions she felt during her first battle with the rouge Decepticon. Jenny retracted her weapons. _I made him feels as helpless as I did. That's enough. _She thought. "Well, what are you waiting for?" Starscream questioned.

"Just go, fly away like the coward you are." Jenny snapped back. Starscream then promptly shifted into his F-16 mode and flew back toward the Harbinger. Jenny activated her comm. "Ratchet? I need a bridge."

**Back at the Silo…**

Jenny walked back through the Ground Bridge and into the Silo. The Autobots gave her a collective disapproving stare. Agent Fowler was there as well. "Do you have any idea how many calls I've gotten regarding explosions and UFOs?" Fowler scolded. "The president almost shut down Team Prime because of what you did today." Optimus stepped in. "I'll take it from here Agent Fowler." Optimus said. Fowler scowled at Jenny once more and walked away.

Optimus knelt down toward Jenny. "Agent Fowler is correct Jenny. You placed yourself, humans, and us in jeopardy today." Optimus scolded. "I know." Jenny replied looking at the floor. "Was killing Starscream worth it?" Optimus questioned. Jenny met Optimus's gaze. "I didn't kill him. I couldn't. Not in cold energon anyway." Jenny answered.

Optimus softened a bit. "Then you are stronger for the choice you made." He praised. "However, you will not go without discipline. You are to begin repairing the elevator immediately." He instructed.

Jenny gave a mock salute. "Will do." She said. Ratchet and the others were flabbergasted. "That's it?" the medic exclaimed. "Jenny has learned her lesson. I doubt she will attempt such rash action in the future." Optimus explained.

That night, Ratchet plugged Jenny into the computer so that it could assist her in tracing Nora's signal. This time, the message came through loud and clear.

**Cybertron. Trypticon Worksite…**

Shockwave received a call on his comm link. "Soundwave, report." Megatron ordered. "Construction is nearly finished my liege. All we need is a suitable replacement for Trypticon's spark." Shockwave reported. "Do not worry. Sound wave has located such a device." Megatron assured…

**A/N:**So there's chapter 7. Please give me your reviews and tell me what you think of the story. I'll be taking a break from this for a bit due to upcoming exams and probably won't update until the 22nd. I will however start a new story which explains Jenny's mark two form. I have a few ideas on what the title should be but, if you have any ideas please send them to me in the comments or through private message. Thanks for reading.


	8. Chapter 8 A New Member and a New Problem

_**My Life as a Teenage Autobot**_

**Chapter 8: A New Member and a New Problem**

Starscream had gone back to Las Vegas to search a different abandoned goldmine. After about a half hour of digging, Starscream found something. It was not Energon, well at least not normal Energon. "Red Energon." Starscream observed. "Whoever uses it can travel at incredible speed. This will do just nicely." Starscream said. He brought the crystals back to the Harbinger to refine them into fuel. There was a problem however. Starscream looked at the container in dismay. "4 medium size crystals only produce half a Mega Liter of fuel?" He groaned. "I suppose I can make it work. Now let's go over the plan one more time…"

**Meanwhile at the Autobot Base…**

"Whew," Jenny sighed. "I'm finally done with the elevator." She flew over to the other Autobots. "The elevator is fully functional again guys." She announced. "I'm sure Agent Fowler will be happy that he doesn't have to Bridge into the base every time he comes." Bulkhead joked. "Yeah, sorry about that again guys." She apologized while sheepishly rubbing her neck. "Hey, I kid. Water under the Ground Bridge." Bulkhead assured.

Over at the computer Ratchet frowned and typed something on the keyboard. He turned and walked toward the rest of the Autobots. "Everyone, I have some news." he began. "Yes Ratchet?" Optimus implored. "As you know I have been in contact with Jenny's mother ever since I was able to trace her transmissions to their source." The medic reminded. "So, when can I go home?" Jenny wondered. "I'm afraid it will be more time than you would prefer." Ratchet admitted.

Jenny's heart sank. "What? Why?" She demanded. "After several painstaking calculations, we have determined that neither of our Bridges posses the power required for inter-dimensional travel." Ratchet answered. "Wait. If that's the case, how did Jenny get here in the first place?" Arcee wondered. "Brrrzzzh, whrrrp blip." Bumblebee whirred in agreement.

"A fluke. A power spike that lasted just long enough to sustain a jump to our dimension." Ratchet replied. "If neither Ground Bridge can get Jenny home, what could?" Optimus wondered. "In order to provide a more stable medium of travel, we would need something on the scale of a Space Bridge." Ratchet said. "And the 'Cons have the only one." Bulkhead remembered. "Not to mention they moved it after the Vector Sigma Affair." Arcee added.

"Could you supercharge the Ground Bridge or something?" Jenny asked in desperation. Ratchet shook his head. "I've already tried that. It's not possible." Bulkhead thought for a moment. "Oh, I know. Why don't we link the Bridges together?" Bulkhead suggested. Ratchet lost it for a moment. "Are you insane?!" He exclaimed. "Linking 2 Ground Bridges together could collapse the entire fabric of time and space!" The other Autobots gave him concerned. Looks. "Ahem. It's not a good idea." He said after regaining his composure.

"So… what you're saying is… I'm _stuck here? Forever?" _Jenny asked in a downtrodden tone. Optimus knelt down and looked Jenny in the optic. "Rest assured, we will do everything in our power to get you home as soon as possible." Optimus promised. "Yeah don't worry kid, we won't let you down." Arcee added.

That seemed to comfort Jenny a bit. Before she could reply Agent Fowler came over the comm. "Prime. The Pentagon detected Decepticon activity in the Amazon rainforest. Apparently they found a large pod similar to the one Shockwave was in." Fowler reported.

"We'll be there as soon as we can." Optimus assured. "Good luck Prime. Fowler out." The agent signed off. "Autobots, transform!" Optimus bellowed. The Autobots shifted into their vehicle modes and awaited further instructions. "Jenny, you may ride with me if you want." Optimus offered. "Sure." Jenny accepted. She climbed into the driver's seat and buckled the seat belt. "Jenny, might I suggest sitting in the passenger's seat?" Optimus suggested. "Why?" Jenny asked. "Though I am unfamiliar with many of Earth's customs, I do know that most humans are not accustomed to seeing an adolescent female driving a semi truck.

"Fine." Jenny conceded. "But _all _humans aren't accustomed to a truck without…" She began until Optimus produced a hologram that bared a stunning likeness to Peter Cullen. "… a driver." Jenny finished. "Autobots, roll out!" Optimus ordered. The four vehicles drove through the Ground Bridge and into the Amazon. When they reached the jungle, the Autobots shifted into robot mode. Jenny stood perched on Optimus's right shoulder with her left hand on his right audio receptor. They immediately saw a team of Decepticon technicians trying to open the pod. Dreadwing was supervising the operation."Optimus look. The emblem." Arcee said. He focused his optics on the side of the pod and clearly made out the Autobot Emblem. "We _must _rescue the Autobot in there." Optimus declared.

"Jenny, you take to the skies and lure Dreadwing away. We will secure the pod." Optimus instructed. "Got it." Jenny replied before blasting off. She flew up to Dreadwing and hovered in front of him. He noticed the Autobot emblem on her arm. "Hey Dreadwing, don't you know not to mess with other bots' belongings?" Jenny teased. Dreadwing narrowed his eyes. "Flyers, to me! The rest of you, defend the pod." Dreadwing ordered. He and a group of four Vehicon Flyers shifted into Jet mode. "Catch me if you can!" Jenny taunted as she bolted away.

The flying Decepticons pursued Jenny away from the work site and Optimus gave the order to charge. He, Bulkhead, Arcee, and Bumblebee stormed in guns blazing. The initial assault felled several Vehicons and the rest fell back to defensive positions around the pod. A couple of Insecticons were there to provide support. "Autobots, focus fire on the nearest Insecticon." Optimus yelled over the sound of incoming laser blasts. The Autobots lit up the bug like a Christmas tree, causing it to explode in a ball of blue flame.

The second Insecticon shifted into bug mode and charged the Autobot team. "Autobots, disperse" Optimus ordered. All but Bumblebee dove for cover. The scout instead waited until the Insecticon was right in front of him before jumping onto its back. He clung to its horns with an iron grip as it bucked and thrashed like a raging bull. "Bumblebee, what are you doing?" Bulkhead asked in astonishment. "Brrrzzzzh weep bloop breeep." The scout replied. As Bee continued to cling to the flailing beast he noticed a slight gap in the neck armor. He let his right hand go and fired his blaster at the gap. Flames and sparks exploded from the Insecticon's neck as it began to plummet from the sky.

The bug and Bee hit the ground with tremendous force, sending trees toppling and dirt flying. When the dust settled Bumblebee released his grip on the Insecticon and stood on it triumphantly. The bug's optics flickered and went dark. "Yeah Bee! Way to go!" Bulkhead cheered. Back in the skies Jenny just finished dispatching Dreadwing's Vehicon escort and started to attack Dreadwing himself. She went inverted and dove to get on Dreawing's tail, but before she could lock on, Dreadwing pulled up sharply and hit his airbrakes. The move put him directly behind Jenny.

He fired several heat seeking missiles at Jenny along with his Gatling cannons. Jenny broke sharply to the left and deployed flares. The missiles streaked past harmlessly and Dreadwing overshot. Jenny reversed her turn and fired her eye lasers. Dreadwing swerved out of the way and flipped over before rolling around to charge at Jenny head on. The two closed at each other at over 2000 miles per hour firing every anti air weapon they had. Jenny pulled up sharply to avoid the incoming ordinance. Dreadwing dove but couldn't maneuver as quickly. Jenny's missiles struck his right wing, his left intake, and part of his engine. Energon began to leak from some of the holes in his body.

As he struggled to resume the fight, he received a message from one of the Vehicons. "What is it?" he snapped. "Commander Dreadwing! The Autobots brought reinforcements; they're overrunning our position-AAAHHH!" The Decepticon soldier screamed. Dreadwing calculated his next move. He was badly damaged and his ground force was all but wiped out. "Dreadwing to Nemesis; the pod is lost. Requesting a Bridge. A spiraling vortex of energy appeared in front of him. Before Jenny could catch him he limped through and vanished.

"Prime, the skies are clear. What's your status?" Jenny asked. "We've secured the site." Optimus replied. "Copy that, I'm on my way." Jenny reported. The Autobots on the ground approached the pod and searched for the combination lock. They soon found it and Optimus entered the 5 digit pass code which started the pods open sequence. The hatch on the front slid open to reveal a tall white Autobot with red highlights, a spherical helmet, and two large red boosters on his back. He awoke from stasis. "Wha… Optimus, is that you?" The bot wondered in an Australian accent.

"Indeed Jetfire." Optimus answered. "Thank Primus. I was worried you hadn't made it." Just then Jenny touched down and saw Optimus helping the Autobot flier out of the pod. "Who's this?" she wondered. "I could ask you the same question." Jetfire quipped. "Jenny, this is Jetfire, one of the Autobots' best fliers." Arcee introduced. "Aw, please, I'm only a scientist who enjoys taking to the skies and busting up 'Cons every now and then." Jetfire assured. "So, who's the little Sheila then?" Jetfire wondered.

"Global Protection Unit XJ9 Mark II, but you can call me Jenny or Jen." She introduced. Jetfire noticed the emblem on her arm. "I see your sportin' the Autobot Emblem. Were you part of the War for Cybertron?" Jetfire asked. "No. I came here by accident." Jenny explained. "It's kind of a long story." "A story that you will have to tell once we get back to base." Optimus interjected. "The humans will no doubt be coming to investigate this mess. Ratchet, Bridge us home." A Ground Bridge Portal opened and the Autobots stepped through. When Jetfire came through Ratchet immediately spotted him.

"Hello Jetfire." Ratchet greeted. "Pleasure to see you after all this time, mate." Jetfire replied. "Yes it has been far too long, old friend." The medic agreed. Ratchet brought the children to the base just before he brought the Autobots and they eyed Jetfire with awe. "Children, this is Jetfire. Not only is he an Autobot flyer, but also an accomplished scientist." Ratchet explained. "Hi. I'm Jack." Jack introduced. "I'm Rafael, but you can call me Raf." Raf continued. "Miko." She finished. "So what does your alt mode look like? How many blasters do you have? How fast can you fly?" Miko asked in her usual eager way.

"Whoa, whoa slow down there." Jetfire interrupted before she could ask more questions. "Besides, we have more important matters to discuss." Optimus added. "How did you get here, and where are the others?" Jetfire whistled. "Well ain't that a tale…"

**Flashback**

**Location: The Ark, Outskirts of the Cyber System**

"Optimus, we're clear of the Cyber System." Jazz reported. "Good. Set the Ark on autopilot." Optimus instructed. "Everyone else, I'm arranging a meeting in the conference chamber. Be there in ten megacycles (side note: cycle=second, megacycle= minute, gigacycle=hour, day=day, stellar cycle= year.) Soon everyone gathered in the chamber to discuss the next move. "As you all know, our Energon reserves will run out in one stellar cycle." Optimus began. "Our next priority is to find new sources of Energon in this galaxy." He continued. He brought up a star map on a monitor as a visual aid. "History confirms that two planets contain Energon deposits that we can use. One is named Earth and the other is named Terax. To cover more ground, we'll split into two teams. The first will be Bulkhead, Bumblebee, Ratchet, Mirage, and I. The second team will be Hound, Ironhide, Jetfire, Sideswipe, and Jazz." Optimus finished.

"My team will take the Ark to Earth, while Team 2 takes the long range stasis pods to Terax. Does anyone have any questions?" Optimus asked. "Yeah I got a question. What happens if the 'Cons follow us to either planet?" Bulkhead questioned. "Then we must fight them off as best as we can." Optimus answered. The meeting adjourned and the Autobots returned to their stations. After a while they began to approach the Space Bridge they stole from the Decepticons in the Battle of Kaon. "We're approachin' the Space Bridge, Optimus." Ironhide repotted.

"Team 2, get to your pods." The Team 2 bots saluted and reported to the pod bay. Suddenly, an alarm went off. "What is it Mirage?" Optimus inquired. "Proximity Alert! Optimus, the Decepticons are hot on our tail!" Mirage reported. "Red Alert! All available Autobots to battle stations!" Optimus ordered. The Nemesis closed on the Ark at great speed. On the bridge Megatron stood eager to destroy his enemy once and for all. "Lord Megatron, we are within firing range." A Vehicon announced. "Commence firing!" Megatron commanded.

The Laser Batteries on the Nemesis targeted the Ark and began to pummel its shields. A battle ensued which resulted in Decepticon teams boarding the Ark from the Transfer Tube on the Nemesis. Unfortunately, Mirage was killed in the fighting. Jetfire got in his pod as soon as Optimus gave the order for Team 2 to launch. When he was putting in the coordinates, a nearby explosion caused his finger to slip and he accidentally input the coordinates for Earth. With no time to change the settings, Jetfire launched the Pod The next thing he knew, he was waking up on Earth.

**End Flashback**

"Unfortunately, I didn't see where the others went. They could be anywhere." Jetfire admitted. "At least we have you. When Jenny leaves we'll still have a guardian in the sky." Bulkhead observed. "Speaking of which there is one more matter that needs resolving. Jetfire must find an Earth based vehicle mode in order to blend in." Optimus said. "I'll contact Agent Fowler." Ratchet said as he began punching in the Agent's phone number.

**Sometime Later…**

The Autobots and the children Bridged to a hangar in Nellis Air Force Base in lower Nevada where Agent Fowler had a selection of various fighter jets. Both the Air Force and the Navy provided potential alt mode vehicles. "Take your pick." Agent Fowler said. Jetfire began to examine each aircraft as a jeweler examines a diamond. He took every aspect into consideration whether it was dimensions, top speed, acceleration, or even structural aesthetics. He finally made a decision. "That's the one." Jetfire said confidently while pointing at an aircraft. "The F-14D Super Tomcat. Nice choice." Agent Fowler approved. Jetfire scanned the plane before shifting into his vehicle mode.

The white paint job and red highlights carried over of course and his back boosters became the engines in vehicle mode. There was no Autobot symbol in vehicle mode so as to maintain a low profile. "So whadya think?" Jetfire asked. "Awesome!" Miko complimented. "Yeah you look like you could take the Nemesis by yourself." Bulkhead concurred. After a quick flight, Jetfire returned to the base with the others.

As Jenny was telling Jetfire her story, Ratchet saw something on the main monitor. "Optimus, I'm getting a message." The medic described. "From Doctor Wakeman?" The Autobot leader asked. "No. It is from Starscream." Ratchet answered. The Autobots and the children gathered around Ratchet. "I have information regarding Megatron's latest scheme. All I ask in return is for you to repair some damage I sustained while getting the intel." Ratchet read. "Bumblebee, take the children home. The rest of us will go to Starscream." Optimus ordered. Bumblebee nodded and shifted into vehicle mode.

Optimus then turned to Arcee and told her to activate the ground bridge. The other Autobots came out the other end weapons drawn into a forest and saw Starscream slumped on a tree. Ratchet walked over to take a look. "Optimus, it looks like Starscream has been offline for a few weeks maybe even a month." Ratchet observed. "Now how can that be? He sent them message a few minutes ago." Jetfire questioned. Jenny and Optimus exchanged looks. "Something is very wrong." The teenager stated. "Arcee, close the ground bridge." Optimus ordered.

Indeed something was very wrong. Starscream used one of his dead clones as a decoy. He seized this moment to run into through Ground Bridge so fast that he was imperceptible to the Autobots. In fact, from his perspective, everything moved very slowly in comparison to him. That's Red Energon for you. Anyway, he made his way into the base and found the vault that contained the artifacts. He went up to one door and saw the Apex Armor. "No." He said. He went to another and saw the phase shifter. "No." He went to another and saw Arachnid in her stasis pod.

"So that's what happened to her. If I had the time I'd extinguish her spark." Starscream grumbled. He went up to one last door. "Aha." Starscream declared. He overrode the security lock and opened the door before taking the Immobilizer out. He shut the door and made his way back to the Ground Bridge. "Arcee, could you be a dear and hold the door open a little longer?" he joked. He came out of the ground bridge behind the other Autobots…

Jenny stretched her concentration as hard as she could. She began to detect something. "Optimus, there's something behind us. It's coming in fa…" Jenny began until see inexplicably froze. "Jenny?" Optimus asked with the slightest touch of worry. "Jenny, say something." Ratchet commanded as he waved his hand in front of her. "Optimus, what in Primus's name is going on?" Ratchet wondered. The Autobot leader was liking this situation less and less. The Autobots all felt something whoosh past them and saw it grab Jenny. They tried to aim for it but it was too fast to track…

Starscream snatched Jenny off of her feet and carried her 50 feet away from the Autobots, making sure that he was in full view. "Autobots, we've been deceived!" Optimus exclaimed. Only, to Starscream, Optimus sounded like he was talking in super slow motion. "Bleaugh blugh blah." Scream mocked as he "walked" back toward the Autobots. "Sorry Optimus I can't understand you when you're so slow." Everything snapped back to normal speed and Starscream was faced with four Autobots with their weapons pointed at him.

"Hehe, the Red Energon wore off didn't it?" said Starscream sheepishly. He turned and ran the other way as the Autobots opened fire. With the Immobilizer and Jenny tucked under one arm, Starscream fumbled to bring out his data pad and activated his Ground Bridge. Starscream shifted into jet mode and bolted toward his Bridge while still dodging the Autobots' fire. Jenny wound up in the cockpit.

"Two can play at that game." Jetfire quipped. He shifted into his own alt mode and took off after the Seeker. Though Jetfire was slightly faster than Starscream, the later bot was already too close to his Ground Bridge for that advantage to matter. Starscream disappeared through his Bridge just before it fizzled out. Jetfire returned to the others and shifted into robot mode before touching down. Shame filled his face.

Optimus continued to stare at the spot where the Ground Bridge had been. "RRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUU GGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHH!" He screamed in anger at himself, Starscream, and Primus. The three other Autobots stood in stunned silence after that. None of them had ever seen Optimus behave like that before. "Jenny's fate, whatever it is… now lies in Starscream's hands." The Autobot leader lamented.

**On the Nemesis**

"Unacceptable!" Megatron yelled while slamming his fist down on a table. "We are so close to finishing Trypticon's restoration, and our only hindrance is the inability to find a teenager!" The other Decepticons eyed him cautiously. "I mean no disrespect my Lord, but she is very difficult to handle." Dreadwing pointed out. "I suppose you'd know from experience." Megatron remarked. "We have no other choice. We must find the Autobot Base, storm it, and capture Jenny." Megatron decided.

"Been there." a voice said. The Decepticon leadership turned to see Starscream holding Jenny and the Immobilizer. "Done That." He boasted. Megatron allowed a slight smile on his face.

**To Be Continued…**

**A/N: **Gasp! What will happen next? In all seriousness I forgot how much I enjoy writing this story. Please tell me what you think, especially my decision to use Jetfire instead of Smokescreen. Don't get me wrong, I like Smokescreen fine, but I think Jetfire is better because he is well liked and the Autobots desperately need a flyer.


	9. Chapter 9 Surgery

_**My Life as a Teenage Autobot**_

**Chapter 9: Surgery**

Megatron allowed himself a slight smile. "Starscream, it's been a while." Megatron said. "Indeed Lord Megatron. I come humbly with a peace offering." He assured gesturing to Jenny and the Immobilizer. "An old trinket is of no interest to me…" Megatron began. Starscream instantly lost his bravado and looked worried. "… your other prize however, is of critical importance." Starscream regained a little confidence after he heard that. "What do you want in return?" Megatron asked. The Lord of the Decepticons was not easily fooled.

Starscream bowed so low it was almost an over sell. "Only to reclaim my role as your faithful Second in Command." Starscream promised. "My Lord, you aren't going to take this deserter seriously are you?" Knockout questioned. "Not without an understanding of his motives." Megatron replied. Knockout cocked an eyebrow in confusion. "Prepare Starscream for a Cortical Psychic Patch." Megatron ordered. Knockout just stood there for a few more seconds. "Yes my Lord." He complied.

After a series of events that this narrator does not feel like describing because they happened in the show, Starscream was reintegrated into the Decepticon ranks and Dreadwing's loyalty was shaken. Seriously, watch the episode "Patch" if you want more information. After the procedure, Megatron turned to Knockout. "Bring in Jenny and extract her power source." Megatron ordered. "I eagerly anticipate what you find."

Sometime later, Jenny was brought into Knockout's lab and secured to an operating table. "Knockout, are you sure those restraints will hold when we wake her up?" Breakdown questioned. "_Relax._" Knockout began. "Not even an Insecticon could bust out of those." Knockout promised. He picked up the immobilizer and turned the knob on the bottom of the shaft to the "mobilize" position. He pointed the device at Jenny. "Uh, Knockout? Why do we even need to unfreeze her anyway?" Breakdown questioned. "Because, my dear Breakdown, the Immobilizer prevents any kind of moving part from working by any means, whether from the user or someone else trying to move them." Knockout explained in his professorial tone.

Breakdown still looked confused. "In order for us to access her innards, we have to be able to use the various doors and panels that conceal them. We cannot do that in her current state." Knockout continued. "Okay, I get it now," Breakdown said.. "And we can't just blast her open because that would risk damage to her power supply." Breakdown continued. "Very good, Brakedown. I think I'm starting rub off on you." Knockout praised. He then used the device to snap Jenny out of her "trance."

Knockout stood directly over her as she woke up from Immobilization."Wakey wakey!" Knockout teased. Jenny blinked her optics a couple of times, unsure of her current situation. "Agh!" she screamed. "What happened? Where am I? What's going on?!" Jenny demanded. Knockout chuckled at her panic and her attempt to break free. "You are now under the _care _of the Decepticons." He joked. "I know you. You're the 'Con's demented medic!" Jenny realized. "_Well that was harsh._" Knockout kidded. "Honestly, Breakdown does Optimus even bother to teach his troops manners?" Breakdown brandished his hammer. "I could teach her a few." He sneered.

"Put that thing away, One Eye, you might take the other one out!" Jenny spat. Even Knockout had to fight the urge to laugh. "Alright, that's enough! I am going to get that power source out of you if it's the last thing I do!" Knockout declared. "Breakdown, begin scanning her." Knockout requested. Breakdown activated a beam that scanned Jenny from head to toe taking in just about everything about her structure and assemblage. Knockout inspected the results of the scan on his screen.

"Interesting. It seems that, aside from lack of transforming into vehicles, your assemblage is a primitive look alike of a Cybertronian. Purely coincidence I'm sure." Knockout reasoned. (I'm trying to ground my version of Jenny into something that resembles reality. You haven't even begun to see mass-shifting until you watch My Life as a Teenage Robot.) "And it appears that you've been outfitted with some sort of power cell that runs on Energon. So if that isn't your normal power source… aha! Another power cell that uses stored up electricity similar to an electric dynamo." Knockout observed.

"Your weapons and gadgets are also very cleverly tucked away." Knockout praised. "Are you sure you're from Earth?" Jenny wanted to blast his brains out with her eye lasers, but stopped herself for she knew there would be some form of retaliation. "Well no use stalling any longer. Time for surgery." Knockout purred as he activated the interface on his data pad. Knockout then opened a small panel on her forehead revealing a connection port. He moved the pad closer to Jenny's forehead at a snail's pace; relishing her terror. He took her head in one hand and used the other to plug directly into her brain through the now exposed port. It was from here that all of Jenny's functions could be accessed from. Provided they get past her firewall.

Knockout typed furiously on the data pad trying to breech the information safeguard. Oh, he wasn't typing code. He was controlling a program "tank" that fired code at a digitized flaming wall while trying to evade Jenny's anti-virus program "tanks". "No, wait! Almost… Aw, he ruined my shot!" Knockout complained. "Knockout," Breakdown began. "Quiet Breakdown! Can't you see I'm trying to concentrate?" the medic interrupted. His fingers continued to dance across the data pad until finally he got past Jenny's encryptions and security. "Yes!" the medic exclaimed victoriously.

Jenny tried everything she could think of to get free of the interface without provoking anything. Unfortunately this limited her to thrashing her head around in hopes of shaking the device free. Knockout typed a few commands in on his keypad and Jenny's HEART (Highly Energized And Rechargeable Ticker) became visible when her chest panels opened. Knockout grasped the power source with a pair of tweezers. Jenny finally gave up and closed her optics in defeat. Knockout gently pulled up and removed Jenny's HEART which was attached to the Energon power cell. Jenny went still. Not even her ventilation system showed signs of operation…

**At the Autobot Base…**

"My Primus, no!" Ratchet gasped as he stared at the computer monitor. "What's wrong, mate?" Jetfire wondered. All the Autobots turned their attention toward the medic. "Jenny's life signal…" Ratchet began but couldn't bring himself to finish. "You aren't sayin' that Jenny's _offline_, r-right?" Bulkhead inquired hopefully. The look on Ratchet's face gave everyone the answer. "Poor kid." Arcee lamented. "Breep, Breeooo…" Bumblebee buzzed in sadness. "Yeah Bee. I barely knew the little Sheila." Jetfire agreed. "Ratchet," Optimus began in an eerily calm voice. "Tell Doctor Wakeman what happened. And that I claim full responsibility." He said before shifting into vehicle mode and driving off…

**Back on the Nemesis…**

Jenny's restraints were deactivated and Knockout picked up Jenny's HEART with his thumb and index finger. "Come, Breakdown, let us deliver what Megatron has so desperately longed for." Knockout proposed while holding Jenny's HEART proudly. The presumed offline robot girl waited until the two Decepticons left the lab and shut the door before opening her optics…

**A/N: **About the ending… I just couldn't bring myself to end the chapter with everyone reading thinking that Jenny was dead. Besides, she is still in mortal danger and has to figure out a way off of the Nemesis. Add to that the fact that Megatron no longer needs her and you've got a recipe for one pulse pounding next chapter. Anyway, tell me what you think as always and thank you for reading.


	10. Chapter 10 The Great Escape

_**My Life as a Teenage Autobot**_

**Chapter 10: The Great Escape**

_Thank Primus for Auxiliary Power._ Jenny thought as she stood up. She knew she had to get off the Nemesis and back to the base fast. Jenny also knew that without her Energon power source, she couldn't even fight a lowly Vehicon much less attempt to recover what was taken from her. She jumped off of the operating table and ran toward the lab door.

She flew up to the door button and tapped it with her palm. The door slid open and Jenny came face to face with two Vehicon Grunts. "What the scrap?!" One of them gasped. "She's still alive?!" The other exclaimed. Jenny closed her eyelids halfway and thought, _Slag. _(She'd recently picked up Cybertronian swearing.) She rocketed past the two soldiers as they drew their blasters and opened fire. (I know that escalated quickly).

"Lord Megatron! The prisoner escaped the lab and she's headed… actually I don't know where she's headed." One of the Vehicons reported with his comm link. In the bridge of the Nemesis, Megatron glared at Knockout and Breakdown, who were just presenting Jenny's power source to him. "How did she escape?" Megatron growled.

"Hehe. (Gulp) Well, we thought she was offline so we deactivated her restraints before we left." Knockout nervously explained. "But we did leave two Vehicons outside." Breakdown added quickly. "Dreadwing, contact Shockwave and tell him to prepare for the delivery of the power source." Megatron ordered. Dreadwing complied silently. "As for you two…" Megatron began. "You will prove your continued usefulness by delivering that power source to Shockwave before the girl can retrieve it."

The two saluted. "Understood, my Lord." Knockout said…

**Nevada Mountains…**

Optimus blocked Ratchet's third call. He didn't very much feel like talking to anyone after the events that had just transpired. He promised Jenny that he would protect her no matter what. Not only did he feel responsible for her capture, but he also felt responsible for her death. "Jenny…" Optimus began. "Wherever you are… please forgive me." He pleaded. Optimus had lost other friends during the War for Cybertron and Cliffjumper's death came into his mind just then. He'd even made personal promises to some of those Autobots; some of which he was unable to keep. _So why does this feel different? _The Prime asked himself. _Why does this feel worse? _Even if she was somehow still functional, he doubted she would forgive him for his failure without some convincing.

_Somehow still functional… _The Prime repeated in his head, turning the thought over and over. With a sudden realization, Optimus activated his comm link. "Ratchet." All Optimus received was the tone indicating that the comm line was busy. _He must be informing Agent Fowler of Jenny's misfortune. _Optimus guessed. However, as he looked into the Moon, he had new hope in his spark that things were not as they seemed. He transformed into truck mode and drove back toward the base.

**Back on the Nemesis**

Jennystopped flying and decided on sprinting through the corridors of the Nemesis in order to conserve her power. After all, her Auxiliary Power System was only designed to sustain her most vital functions in times of crisis. Depending on the situation, the system would automatically calculate priorities and allocate power accordingly. Unfortunately, the system decided Radar was not a priority. A group of six Vehicons were gaining on her and she desperately looked for an escape route in the form of a loose panel, an access hatch, anything she could duck or crawl into to evade capture.

Alas, no such lucky break presented itself, so Jenny tried something else. She activated her comm link and dialed the number for Agent Fowler's encrypted line. "Special Agent William Fowler here." He answered in a bored tone. "Agent Fowler, I don't have much time. Soundwave is probably decrypting the signal right now. Deliver this message to the Ratchet: Jenny is alive." Jenny instructed. William Fowler was baffled. Before he could say anything Jenny hung up. He quickly wrote down the code phrase and was about to pick up the phone to start dialing the number for Team Prime's base when his phone rang first.

He picked up. "Special Agent William Fowler." He said in a more awake tone. "Its Ratchet." The medic began. "I have news regarding Jenny…" Ratchet said solemnly. "That she's alive and on the Nemesis?" Fowler guessed. "Agent Fowler, I understand that you may harbor hard feelings against her, but joking about her being alive is downright despicable." Ratchet spat. "Who gave you this information?" Agent Fowler stood up and walked toward his office window. "Jenny herself." The Agent answered matter of factly. "And she _did _almost cause Uncle Sam to shut down Team Prime." Ratchet couldn't believe what he was hearing. "How do you know for certain that she was offed?" Fowler wondered.

"Her life signal went offline." Ratchet growled. "Is there any other scenario other than being offline in which your scanners can't detect her?" Fowler offered. Ratchet's optics widened as he remembered his repairs on Jenny. _Even if they took her default power source along with the Energon Cell, she still has an auxiliary power unit. And neither we nor the Decepticons can track it. _ "By the Allspark!" he gasped in realization. He then noticed that Optimus was trying to get through on the comm. "Thank you Agent Fowler, you've been a tremendous help." Ratchet said. "Anytime." Fowler replied.

Ratchet quickly punched in Optimus's frequency and called him back. "Optimus, I have wonderful news." He began as Jetfire, Bulkhead, Bumblebee, and Arcee arrived back from patrol and shifted into robot mode. "Jenny is alive and well." Ratchet announced. "Huh?" Arcee said. "Is it April Fool's Day already?" Bulkhead asked in disbelief. "It is not a joke, Bulkhead." Optimus replied. "Wait, you know too?" Ratchet asked.

"Let us just say that I realized Jenny would not perish easily." Optimus said. "What is her location?" Ratchet looked down. "That's the bad news… she's on the Nemesis." Ratchet reported. "It would stand to reason that Starscream used Jenny as leverage to regain his status in Megatron's fold." Optimus surmised. "Beeeep, beep bwoop blip whhrr? Bumblebee asked. "I have a solution Bee." Jetfire assured. "You do?" Ratchet questioned. Jetfire opened a secret compartment in his thigh and removed a data pad with a considerable amount of odds and ends attached to it.

"Jetfire, please tell me _this_ isn't a joke." Ratchet groaned. "It's not. During the war I tried to figure out how to detect Cloakers more easily, so I modified this Data Pad for just that purpose." Jetfire started. "With a few tweaks, I can get to locate the Nemesis to within 5 klicks( kilometers) even if it's cloaked." The Autobots then formed their plan to rescue Jenny.

**Back on the Nemesis…**

_What the frag is taking them so long? _Jenny thought in frustration. She'd been running around the Nemesis for an hour and her power level was already down to 64% and falling. _Did my nonexistent death look that convincing?_ She lost the six Vehicons from earlier but was now coming on a groupof 10 Vehicons running in two parallel lines with five in each line. There were no side hallways in this section of the ship and she was going too fast to turn around or double back quickly.

_Well, YOLO, right? _Jenny thought sarcastically. She jumped twirled and flipped around the Vehicons like a professional acrobat. She even used some of their limbs as flipping bars. "Pardon me, 'xcuse me, coming through, make some room guys." Jenny joked as she danced around the Decepticon grunts. When Jenny finished getting around them she turned her head around and stuck her tongue out at them. The Vehicons shifted into car mode and gave pursuit.

Jenny rounded a corner to find herself a mere thirty feet from none other than Megatron, the latter of which heard the commotion and was on his way to investigate. The Vehicons rounded the corner as well and forced Jenny to maintain her course. Megatron fired his fusion cannon as he ran at Jenny, but all of his shots missed.

Well, one of them hit a Vehicon. Anyway, one casualty aside the Decepticons had her cornered. Or so they thought. At the last second Jenny rocket jumped to skirt around Megatron's right side. She barely cleared his torso before she resumed her full sprint down the corridor. Megatron whirled around just before he heard screeching tires and brake pads.

Before Megatron could do anything, eight of the nine remaining Vehicons crashed into their leader in the most comical fender bender imaginable. The lone Vehicon that didn't crash shifted into robot mode. "Uh Lord Megatron, are you alright?" he asked. Megatron lifted his right arm out of the wreckage and blasted the fool as a response.

He threw more of the wrecked Vehicons off of him. Soundwave walked in front of the scene just then and assisted Megatron onto his feet. "I'm fine, Soundwave." Megatron growled. He turned toward the communications officer. "Which way did she go?" he asked.

Soundwave showed his leader Jenny's location by playing back security camera footage with her visor. Megatron smiled from one edge of his "helmet" to the other. "Perfect." He declared.

Jenny finally found an open door and went inside the room it should have blocked off. She jumped up and closed it before any 'Con could notice. She held her hands on her knees and vented heavily as if she were an Olympic runner in desperate need of a breather. _If I don't get a medal for this, I'm going to be soooo angry. _She thought. Another quick check told the robot girl that she was down to 39% power and the level continued to fall.

Since Jenny had some time to think, she decided to use it. _Why did they want my power source in the first place? _She wondered. Then it hit her. The proton cannon, her HEART, Shockwave, the mine in Alberta, even Starscream's message were all connected somehow. _Looks like Starscream wasn't lying when he said Megatron was up to something._ She thought smugly. The only problem was, she didn't know how everything was connected.

Jenny just noticed that several strands of her hair had come out of her hair ties and wound up every which way on her head. _You know, since I got here I haven't seen a single…_ she began to think when she heard low growls all around her. Jenny slowly turned around to face the entire Insecticon Horde waking up from sleep-stasis. An onlooker would have sworn they saw Jenny's pigtails droop suddenly out of fear. "Aw slag. Slag. Slag. Slag! SLAG!" Jenny swore before she slammed the door button.

She ran out the room as fast as her servos would allow her. "So much for a breather." Jenny quipped to herself. She continued running until she saw a Ground Bridge Portal open in front of her. Jenny dug her heels into the ground and stopped a few feet before the vortex. It blocked the entire hallway. Megatron and Soundwave ran up behind Jenny with a team of Vehicons. They pointed their weapons at her and charged them up. "Good work Soundwave." Megatron praised. Soundwave displayed the Ground Bridge Controls on his visor. "What? But if you didn't…"

Before Megatron could finish his question, light blue laser blasts flew out of the Bridge and slammed into the Decepticons. First Optimus, then Bulkhead, Jetfire, Bumblebee, and Arcee charged through the bridge guns blazing. "Arcee!" Optimus shouted. "On it!" The Autobot ninja replied as she shifted into vehicle mode and sped toward Jenny. The Decepticon's snapped out of their daze and returned fire.

Arcee shifted to robot mode, scooped Jenny up, shifted back to motorcycle mode, and sped back toward the Bridge. "STOP HER!" Megatron bellowed. Arcee and Jenny went through the ground bridge. The other Autobots kept up the cover fire and slowly retreated into the Ground Bridge Vortex. "After them!" Megatron ordered as he charged at the vortex. Just as he got within 3 yards of the vortex, he noticed a grenade on the floor. It detonated as soon as the vortex closed. (_Valkyrie _was right. Any problem can be solved with the proper application of high explosive. Please don't start trying to solve your problems with explosives.

After the smoke cleared, the Decepticons that were still functional stood up and dusted themselves off, including Megatron and Soundwave. Knockout and Breakdown returned just then. "Shockwave has the device My Lord." Knockout began. "Did we miss anything?" Megatron looked up and laughed softly at first. "The girl escaped, but at least Shockwave has the device now." He said.

**A/N****:** Okay, new game. Take one sip of whatever your drinking every time someone has a sudden realization.


	11. Chapter 11 Debrief

_**My Life as a Teenage Autobot**_

**Chapter 11: Debrief**

Arcee, Bumblebee, Jetfire, Optimus and Bulkhead came back through the Ground Bridge and into the Autobot base. Arcee was still carrying Jenny in her arms. "You okay kid?" Arcee asked. "I'mm... good… don't wworry… 'bout me..." Jenny slurred. Arcee eased Jenny out of her arms and onto the floor. The girl could barely stand she was so weak. "Ratch…" She began before her knees gave out.

Ratchet picked Jenny up off of the floor. "Are we too late?" Arcee wondered worriedly. Ratchet shook his head. "She is programmed to go into sleep mode whenever her power level falls below 5%." He said before placing Jenny on his operating table. "It shouldn't be long before I can build another Energon cell for her." Ratchet assured. "And now that I'm here, it'll go twice as fast." Jetfire chimed in. "That it will old friend." Ratchet agreed.

As the two scientists began their work, the Autobots heard a helicopter land on the base's helipad. A few seconds later, the elevator opened revealing three of the most powerful people in the world… and Agent Fowler. The other people were General Bryce of the United States Army, Secretary of Defense Jill Canton, and President Alex Jones.

Viewers of the show already know what the General looks like but for those of you who don't, he's a sixty something Caucasian male with grey hair that parts down the middle. He wears an olive green jacket and pants with several tour medals on the left side of his chest and four stars on each shoulder.

Secretary Canton was a mid forties Hispanic woman with dark hair and eyes that could pierce even Ironhide's protective shell. Her hair was in a librarian bun and she wore a black pants suit. As the first female Secretary of Defense, Canton was strict and no nonsense, and usually preferred to speak her mind.

The president was an African American in his early fifties, however his eyes made him look twenty years older. Between fighting global terrorism, wrestling with Congress, and dealing with the press, the Presidency takes a lot out a person. He had a full head of hair that had almost gone completely gray and had a stature of about 6' 2". In fact, he was the tallest human in the room.

"To what do we owe this rare opportunity Mr. President?" Optimus greeted politely. "We're here to debrief your new member." President Jones answered. Optimus turned his head toward Ratchet and Jetfire for a moment before turning back to the leader of the free world. "I am afraid that will have to wait. Jenny is currently undergoing repairs due to her ordeal on the Nemesis." Optimus informed.

"Actually, that's what we wanted to debrief her on. It is of absolute importance that she tells us everything she knows about the Decepticon warship." Secretary Canton explained. "How soon can she be ready?" President Jones asked. "Half an hour at most!" Ratchet answered from across the room.

"Very well." The president said. "There are refreshments in the eastern hallway." Optimus offered. As the four humans walked away Optimus called out. "Agent Fowler?" The agent stopped and turned around. "Yes Prime?" he answered. "May I speak with you privately?" Optimus asked. Arcee, Bumblebee, and Bulkhead transformed into vehicle mode and left the base to get their human companions. Hey, they know when to take a hint.

Anyway Agent Fowler stopped at a few feet from the Autobot Leader and looked up. "What did you want to discuss, Prime?" Agent Fowler asked. Optimus knelt down on one knee and looked straight into Agent Fowler's eyes. "Will Jenny be debriefed here?" he asked. Agent Fowler shook his head. "Sorry Prime. The President and the Defense Secretary want to take Jenny to Washington." Fowler informed. Optimus frowned for a minute. "What will they do with her after they finish?" Optimus wondered.

Fowler cocked his head to one side. "I'm not sure I follow." He admitted. "You know as well as I do that there are people in your government and military that would want to use Jenny as a weapon of war." Optimus said frankly. "That is something that I will not allow."

"No offense Prime, but isn't that what _you're_ doing?" Fowler questioned. Unfortunately Optimus was offended by that statement. However, instead of ripping Fowler's face off (like a version of Prime that will henceforth go unmentioned), Optimus maintained his usual level headed demeanor. "Jenny fights for the Autobots because she _chose_ to. The only restrictions I give her are for her own well being." Optimus replied.

"Alright alright. Anyway, don't worry about Jenny. I'll make sure that she's on her way back here as soon as they finish debriefing her." Agent Fowler assured. "Thank you Agent Fowler." Optimus said. Fowler looked up at Optimus and said, "Don't mention it."

Jetfire and Ratchet finished the Energon Cell. When They placed it into Jenny's HEART Annex, she awoke with a start. "Yyyeeeooooww!" she exclaimed. "Thanks you guys. I owe you one." Jenny thanked. "Optimus, she's ready." Ratchet reported. Optimus escorted Agent Fowler, President Jones, Secretary Canton, and General Bryce into the main room.

Jenny saw them and cocked an eyebrow. "Hey Prime, who are the suits?" Jenny asked. "These _suits_ are two of the most powerful people in the world, young lady." Canton scolded. "Jenny, meet, President Jones and Defense Secretary Canton." Optimus introduced. Jenny's eyes widened with realization. "Sorry. I…" Jenny didn't want to tell them where she was actually from so she decided to bend the truth a little. (The president in TFP's dimension is different from the president in MLaaTR) "… don't watch the news much."

Jenny hovered down to ground level and held out her hand to President Jones. "I'm Jenny." She greeted. Jones shook her hand firmly. Secretary Canton offered no such pleasantries. "Jenny, the president is going to take you to the capital so you can answer questions regarding your ordeal on the Nemesis." Optimus said.

"Okay, let's go then." Jenny decided. Optimus watched her go up the elevator as a father watches his daughter leave on a first date. As soon as he heard the helicopter leave, Optimus turned to Ratchet. "Keep a close optic on Jenny. I do not want to lose her again." He ordered. The medic nodded in compliance.

**A few hours later…**

Washington D.C. was pretty much the same in this dimension as it was in Jenny's. There were the same landmarks, same official buildings, and the same lobbyists buying votes in Congress. After touching down at Andrews Air Force Base, Jenny got into a black SUV that took her to the Department of Defense.

She waited in a grey room with a one way window on one side and a table with two chairs in the middle. Behind the window was the President, the Defense Secretary, some DOD staff, and two Secret Service agents.

After a half hour of waiting, Agent Fowler stepped into the room and sat down at the table. He held a file stuffed with papers and photographs. "Okay. State your name for the record." Fowler requested. "Jenny Wakeman." She replied. The DOD employees ran the name through every known database and found no matches.

"Where did you first wake up?" Fowler asked. "I woke up in the ship's equivalent of a sickbay. There were all kinds of tools and monitoring equipment in there." Jenny explained. "Anything else?" Folwer probed. "Oh yeah. Starscream was on the table next to the one I was on. I'm not sure why."(I now realize that Starscream appears nowhere in Chapter 10 so that's my attempt to cover my rear.)

"How did you get out of the sick bay?" Fowler continued. "Knockout and Breakdown unlocked my restraints after they thought I was offline. After my auxiliary power kicked in, I simply got up and opened the door. Unfortunately the alarm was raised immediately when I ran into some Vehicon guards."

Debriefing went on like that until Jenny recounted her ordeal from start to finish. "Anything else you'd like to know?" Jenny asked. "What can you tell us about the interior layout of the Nemesis?" Jenny asked for some paper and produced a pen from her right index finger. She drew a rough sketch of the inside of the Nemesis and all the places she'd been to.

"I'd give you a radar scan, but my radar was inactive at the time due to the fact that it would have used too much power." Jenny explained. "Well, it might not be complete, but at least we have some idea of the layout of Megatron's ship." Fowler observed. Next Jenny identified some photos that were in Fowler's folder and gave more detailed descriptions of the Decepticon brass.

"Agent Fowler, there is one more thing." Jenny began. "I believe that the recently stolen proton cannon, Shockwave, and the recent mining activity are connected." Fowler nodded once in acknowledgement. "I'll advise the Joint Chiefs." Fowler assured. "That should be everything." Said Fowler. He escorted Jenny out of the room and led her to the SUV that brought her to the DOD building. Fowler relieved the driver and took his seat.

Jenny cocked an eyebrow. "What's going on?" Jenny wondered. "I'm keeping a promise to Prime." He answered while pulling onto the road. "What promise?" Jenny questioned. "To personally ensure that you made it back to Team Prime safely." Fowler answered. Jenny thought that made sense though she made a mental note to ask Optimus about it later.

After another long flight, Jenny and Fowler made it back to the Autobot base. They rode the elevator to the command room and stepped out. Jack, Miko, and Raph arrived during Jenny's time in Washington. "Hey guys, I'm back!" Jenny announced. Optimus looked very relieved. "Thank you Agent Fowler." Optimus thanked. Fowler pressed the button to return to the silo's roof. "Don't mention it." He replied.

Fowler left the base on his helicopter and headed over to his office. "Did I miss anything?" Jenny wondered. "Strangely, there has been no sign of any Decepticon activity. Even their mines appear silent." Ratchet reported. "Does this mean the 'Cons just packed up and left for good?" Miko asked. Jenny turned to her. "I don't think so. I think they're planning something big."

**Cybertron: Trypticon Restoration Site**

"Ah. I recognize Ratchet's work when I see it." Shockwave said while admiring the device that Knockout and Breakdown delivered. He turned to a Vehicon technician. "You there! Inform Lord Megatron that I should be able to reverse engineer this device and install it in Trypticon within the week." The Vehicon saluted and activated a comm console. _The Autobots won't know what hit them…_ Shockwave thought.

**A/N: **Sorry about the long wait for a chapter and for the lack of action, but I figured the plot needed to take a breather before things really got crazy. Thank you to all who have read this story and given it praise. Feel free to offer your thoughts and opinions. Thank you for reading.


	12. Chapter 12 Rebooted

_**My Life as a Teenage Autobot**_

**Chapter 12: Rebooted**

Shockwave stepped back to admire his work. After weeks of tedious and challenging labor he and his team finally finished reconstructing Trypticon. The once wrecked city was as pristine and battle ready as ever. Pretty impressive considering the damage the Autobots did to it-er- him so long ago. He was outfitted with new and better point defense cannons, shield generators, missile launchers, and the devastating main proton cannon.

Shockwave threw a switch on a console which was connected to Trypticon. A signal traveled into the restored city and activated the Energon Cell that replaced his spark. Lights began to come on in the city and servos hummed back into life. When the power up process completed, Shockwave stepped toward Trypticon.

"Can you hear me Trypticon?" Shockwave asked. The Decepticon scientist was met by a low, loud, and powerful voice. "YES." The city bellowed. "Good. Now try to transform." Shockwave commanded. Several large servos and gears grinded into motion as the city literally stood up on two gigantic legs. As the city continued to form what looked like a robotic T-Rex, Shockwave and the Vehicon technicians watched in awe.

"I! AM! TRYPTICON!" The T-Rex hollered as he finished transforming. He towered over the wrecked Cybertronian landscape, making even Shockwave look like an ant in comparison. His main body color was a very dark shade of purple and he also had gold and red highlights. (Think Trypticon in War for Cybertron) His optics burned with blood red and his mouth contained teeth that could chomp a Cybertronian to bits. Even in this mode, several of the defensive armaments and weapons were visible in the form of twin barreled cannons and missile pods. On Trypticon's back was the only thing uncharacteristic of a T-Rex: a massive jet pack with four engines.

Shockwave activated his comm-link. "Lord Megatron I have good news. Trypticon is online." Back on the bridge of the Nemesis, Megatron grinned. "Excellent work Shockwave." He praised. "Wait, Shockwave is back?! And he repaired Trypticon?!" Starscream asked in astonishment. "How long was I out?" Megatron turned to Starscream. "Shockwave was recovered several weeks ago and he has worked on Trypticon since then." Megatron informed. "This reminds me, I need to clarify the new chain of command."

"Shockwave is now my first lieutenant in charge of all scientific endeavors, though you will retain control over military operations." Starscream's wings sagged in disappointment. "So what you're saying is, we shall both report directly to you?" Starscream guessed. Megatron nodded in response. "_Wonderful."_ Starscream growled.

"Shockwave, tell Trypticon to take flight toward the Space Bridge. After that, Soundwave will Bridge you onto the Nemesis." Megatron advised. "Understood my liege; Shockwave out." Shockwave replied.

He did as was instructed and joined the Decepticon leadership on the bridge of the Nemesis. "Starscream, I am surprised you survived this long." Shockwave insulted. "At least I wasn't trapped in a pod by the Autobots." Starscream shot back. "Quiet both of you!" Megatron commanded.

Just then, Trypticon came through the Space Bridge. Once he was through, the bridge closed. Megatron then ordered to positioned himself halfway between Earth and its moon. "Trypticon, keep your sights fixed on a city named Washington D.C. but hold your fire until further notice." Megatron ordered. "YES LORD MEGATRON." Trypticon complied as he fired his thrusters to move into position.

**At the Autobot Base…**

Miko plugged her guitar into her amp and turned to Jenny. "Ready?" she asked. Jenny gave a nod. The rest of the Autobots, Jack, and Raph gathered around them. Miko began strumming the four note opening to the song Jenny picked. Then Jenny began to sing. (Feel free to find the song on Youtube and play it here.)

"You got the touch  
You got the power, yeah!

After all is said and done  
You've never walked, you've never run,  
You're a winner."

Everyone was stunned and impressed by Jenny's singing. Even Ratchet was secretly tapping his foot to the beat of the song.

"You got the moves, you know the streets  
Break the rules, take the heat  
You're nobody's fool

You're at your best when the goin' gets rough  
You've been put to the test, but it's never enough

You got the touch  
You got the power

When all hell's breakin' loose  
You'll be riding the eye of the storm

You got the heart  
You got the motion

You know that when things get too tough  
You got the touch

You never bend, you never break  
You seem to know just what it takes  
You're a fighter

It's in the blood, it's in the will  
It's in the mighty hands of steel  
When you're standin' your ground

And you never get hit when your back's to the wall  
Gonna fight to the end and you're takin' it all

You got the touch  
You got the power

When all hell's breakin' loose  
You'll be riding the eye of the storm

You got the heart  
You got the motion

You know that when things get too tough  
You got the touch

You're fightin' fire with fire  
You know you got the touch"

Miko performed the short guitar solo and sang with Jenny after she finished.

You're at your best when when the road gets rough  
You've been put to the test, but it's never enough

You got the touch  
You got the power, yeah!"

Miko ended the song with a powerful chord that resonated around the room for a few seconds. "You sing?" Jack asked in amazement. Jenny blushed. "I do a little vocal work in my spare time." She answered. "Sounds like you've been singin' for years." Bulkhead complimented. "Yeah you've got an awesome voice." Miko agreed.

BEEP BEEP BEEP. The comm system rang. "It's Agent Fowler." Ratchet observed. He patched the government agent through. "Prime, you'd better take a look at this." Fowler began. He transmitted three images of a giant robotic T-Rex in extreme high orbit above Earth. "The Hubble Telescope and ISS snapped these about an hour ago. The Pentagon thought you could identify them."

The images appeared on Ratchets computer screen. As soon as they appeared, all of the Autobots' eyes widened. "By the Allspark!" Ratchet gasped. "No. That's not possible. I _saw _Optimus take him down." Jetfire remembered. "So, who is it?" asked Fowler. "That is a Decepticon known as Trypticon. He was one of Megatron's most powerful weapons during the War for Cybertron." Optimus said. "That's it! That's what they were doing!" Jenny blurted out. The Autobots, the children, and Fowler gave her confused looks.

"Optimus, you said that Shockwave built weapons for Megatron right? And Megatron stole my power source and the proton cannon right?" Jenny began. "So this whole time, Shockwave was restoring Trypticon so that Megatron could send him to Earth." Arcee deduced. "And that must mean that the Cons moved their Space Bridge into space." Ratchet added. "No pressure Prime, but you and your team have to take Trypticon down. That cannon could do unspeakable damage to Earth's population centers." Fowler warned.

"I agree Agent Fowler. Unfortunately, Trypticon is out of Ground Bridge range and only Jetfire could reach him if we made it to space." Optimus informed. Fowler thought for a moment. "I'll call some people at NASA." He said before hanging up.

"Uh, Prime, Jetfire's not the only Autobot here that can make it to space." Jenny pointed out. "You're not telling me that you can are you?" Ratchet scoffed. It was Jenny's turn to show the Autobots some transformation. Her back opened up and two rocket engines extended from it while two wings folded into a swept forward position on either side of the engines. Finally a silver mask formed over Jenny's mouth and nose. "Nice mask." Arcee quipped.

**Back in High Orbit…**

"Soundwave, have you finished hacking into the frequency of every communication device in Washington?" Megatron asked. Soundwave gave a slow nod in response. "Begin recording." Megatron ordered. Soon, Megatron's face appeared on every television, cell phone, tablet, and computer screen in DC. "Greetings fleshlings, I am Lord Megatron of the Decepticons." The image cut to Trypticon. "As I speak there is a weapon in high orbit above the planet with the ability to level your cities. If I do not receive the exact coordinates of the Autobot base within the next 72 Earth hours, I will destroy Washington D.C. Any attempt to resist will result in destruction of the city before the deadline expires. That is all."

**Back at the Autobot Base…**

Agent Fowler called the Autobots back. "Our guys in Washington got a transmission from Megatron." Fowler announced. He played the message back for the Autobots. "The good news is that the folks over at NASA have agreed to help us out." Fowler said. "Bridge into the former Orbital Processing Facility at Cape Canaveral."

Ratchet fired up the Ground Bridge and locked its coordinates on the OPF. "Jack, Miko, Raph," Optimus began. "Remain here to monitor communications and operate the Ground Bridge. We may need Ratchet to assist the NASA engineers." The children nodded in agreement. When the Autobots stepped through the ground bridge, they walked into a large white building with several floors of scaffolding and high tech repair equipment. Some engineers and technicians were examining something under a white tarp in a far corner.

One of the engineers walked up to the Autobots. She had dark brown hair, slightly tanned skin, chocolate brown hair, and was about 5'10". She wore a white lab coat over a yellow polo shirt and jeans. She also had red rimmed glasses. The scientist beamed at the Autobots like a fan girl. "Oh. My. God. It's you. It's Optimus Prime!" She exclaimed. "And you are?" Optimus wondered. "Lauren Pond at your service." She answered.

"I beg your pardon, Miss Pond, but why did Agent Fowler want us to come here?" Optimus asked. "Because we're going to outfit you with these." She answered while gesturing to some silver tubes of varying size with several wires connected to them. There were also several warning signs on the sides. "These are experimental Ion Pulse Rockets." Lauren explained. "If my calculations are correct, they should give you enough power to reach Trypticon from Earth orbit."

"How long do you estimate it will take to outfit the engines?" Ratchet inquired. "With the manpower and resources we have here I estimate we can finish by tonight." Lauren answered. "There is one more thing. In order to add maneuvering thrusters, we'll need to add wings to the rockets." Lauren added. "Shouldn't be a problem. Ratchet and I will make sure everything goes smoothly." Jetfire promised. "You might want to be careful of Ratchet though. He can be a control freak sometimes."

Ratchet glared at Jetfire. "Alright, alright let's get to work." Ratchet said. The engineers decided that Arcee would be the easiest bot to outfit with a rocket pack, so they started with her. After some quick calculations, the scientists concluded that Arcee would need only one medium sized engine. Mounting it and the wings was simple enough as there was plenty of room between Arcee's existing back wings.

Bumblebee was next up and he was a bit apprehensive about people tampering with his assemblage. Jenny flew up to his eye level. "Don't worry Bee. It's only temporary. Besides, you're gonna love flying." She promised. Jenny's words seemed to comfort the scout so he calmed down and allowed the humans to do their work. They gave him two medium sized engines and foldable extensions for his door wings.

Next was the real challenge: Bulkhead. Some of the engineers doubted if they could even get him off the ground much less into space. But, they decided that two large engines and a medium engine would provide enough power. The One large engine went on each side of the wheels on his back and the medium engine went in the space between those wheels. Like Bumblebee, Bulkhead received foldable wings that housed the thruster modules. "This will take some getting' used to." Bulkhead quipped.

Finally, Optimus received two large engines that mounted onto his back near his smoke stacks. The foldable wings he received were swept back and the same shade of red that he was. Silver trim covered the leading edge of each wing. "Wow. You guys look awesome." Jenny complimented.

"Miss Pond, thank you for your services." Optimus thanked. "No problem Optimus. It was an honor." She replied. The Autobots returned to the base where agent Fowler, the children and Wheeljack were waiting. "Jackie!" Bulkhead exclaimed. "Good to see you too Bulk." Wheeljack said. "Jenny, meet Wheeljack." Bulkhead introduced. Wheeljack and Jenny eyed each other with curiosity. "I here talk you gotten yourself into some fixes during your time here." Wheeljack baited.

Jenny didn't flinch. "I here talk you have a callous disregard for rules, safety, and orders." She countered. After a few more seconds of staring the two burst into laughter. "You've got guts kid, I'll give you that." Wheeljack praised. "What brings you here?" Bulkhead questioned. "I was passing through the system when I picked up Megatron's transmission so I decided to head over here." Wheeljack said. "Nice wings by the way."

"Alright Prime, here's the story. The Pentagon wants to arm Jetfire with nuclear warheads to defeat Trypticon." Fowler began. Jenny rolled her eyes. "_Nukes. _Why is it always nukes?" Jenny scoffed. "Agent Fowler, you know as well as I do that nuclear weaponry would be as dangerous to us as it would be to Trypticon." Optimus replied.

"I know. I'll try to convince the brass that you're way is the best way to take Trypticon down." Fowler agreed. "Thank you." Optimus replied. He then turned to the Autobots to brief them on the attack plan. "Autobots, our mission is this: to get inside Trypticon and destroy him before he destroys Washington. First, we will use the Ground Bridge to reach low Earth orbit and use our new rocket packs to get us the rest of the way to Trypticon." Optimus began.

"Once there, we will split into three teams. Team One will consist of Jenny, and Jetfire. Their objective is to infiltrate Trypticon and destroy his power source." Optimus said. "Hold on, how do we get inside Trypticon in the first place?" Jenny wondered. "The old fashioned way." Ratchet stated while bringing up Trypticon's schematics on one of his monitors. "This schematic might be inaccurate now, but to access Trypticon's inner workings you'll have to fly directly into his mouth." Ratchet said.

"In order to ensure Team One's entry, Team Two which consists of Bumblebee, Arcee, and Wheeljack, will distract Trypticon by attacking his defenses. Team Three which consists of me and Bulkhead will target the Nemesis in order to prevent it from defending Trypticon." Optimus continued. "Also, Bulkhead and I will attempt to take control of the Nemesis in order to gain access to the Decepticon's Space Bridge. If we can hold out long enough for Trypticon's destruction, we can send Jenny home. Jenny, you must decide whether we should stay and fight or blow the bridge." Optimus stated.

Jenny nodded in acknowledgement. "Once Team One is inside they will make for Trypticon's spark chamber. Once there Jetfire will plant explosive charges while Jenny covers him. When Jetfire announces that the charges are planted, all teams will leave the area and bridge back to the base. The resulting explosion from Trypticon's destruction would be devastating to anyone within its vicinity." Optimus warned.

"Autobots, this will be our most difficult battle yet. Though I cannot be certain that all of us will survive, I am certain that we must do everything in our power to protect the 7 billion beings who call this planet home." Optimus concluded. He then turned to Ratchet and told him to open the ground bridge. "Autobots, into the Ground Bridge!" he commanded. One by one, each of the Autobots ran through the swirling green vortex toward a battle that would decide the fate of planet Earth.

**A/N: **I cannot thank you enough for your continued support. Your views and reviews mean so much to me. On an unrelated note, Lauren Pond is based off of my sister ImWithTheBand121 who proofreads my stories. Tell me what you think and thank you for reading.


	13. Chapter 13 Fire in the Sky

_**My Life as a Teenage Autobot**_

**Chapter 13: Fire in the Sky**

**A/N: **The title of this chapter is a reference to a G1 episode of the same name.

The crew of the Nemesis waited patiently as the ship idled next to Trypticon, ready to defend the massive Decepticon should any foolish being try to stop them. "Lord Megatron, I am still receiving no response from the humans." A Vehicon reported. "They still have about sixty hours to respond. We will not fire until then." Megatron replied.

"Master, would it not be easier to simply raze each city one by one?" Starscream asked. "Besides, it's not like the Autobots can reach us all the way out here." Megatron shook his head. "We gave the humans a deadline and we will not attack until it expires. More importantly, I don't want to destroy the city until I have the location of the Autobot base."

Suddenly, a blip appeared on the warship's scanners. "Sir, I'm detecting a Ground Bridge portal about 500 miles from Earth's surface." A Vehicon announced. "Optimus; I knew you were bold, but this is just…" Megatron began before the Autobots flew out of the Ground Bridge at blinding speed. "Impossible!" Megatron yelled in astonishment. "Dreadwing, intercept and destroy the Autobots before they make it to Trypticon." Megatron ordered. Dreadwing nodded and made for the flight deck.

"Starscream, join Shockwave on Trypticon and be prepared to defend him in case the Autobots make it inside." Begrudgingly Starscream ground bridged onto Trypticon's observation deck. Meanwhile, Megatron continued to watch the Autobots fly toward Trypticon. He noticed that Wheeljack's ship, the Jackhammer, joined the group. "How is this possible? How did Optimus, Arcee, Bumblebee, and Bulkhead get the ability to fly?" Megatron wondered.

Dreadwing and an armada of Vehicon flyers blasted off from the flight deck of the Nemesis and headed toward the Autobots. "Attention all flyers, split the Autobot formation and engage in asymmetrical dogfights. Do _not_ engage one on one." Dreadwing ordered.

Arcee spotted the incoming formation. "Optimus, we have incoming bogeys. Dreadwing is leading them." She warned. "Autobots, stay in formation until we are near Trypticon and the Nemesis." The Autobots maintained their V formation to maximize their ability to defend themselves. "They're in range!" Jetfire said. Optimus drew his blaster cannons "Autobots, open fire!" he commanded. The rest of the Autobots drew their weapons and fired on the Decepticons.

Two of the Vehicons exploded from the Autobots fire. "Return fire!" Dreadwing yelled. The Decepticons brought their own weapons to bear and commenced a counter attack. "The Autobots bobbed, weaved, and rolled to avoid the incoming blasters. Bulkhead was having a bit more trouble than the rest though. "Whoa, whoa, easy." He said to himself. He momentarily looked back to make sure the pulse rockets weren't the problem and when he looked forward again he slammed straight into a Vehicon. The Vehicon exploded and Bulkhead went spiraling out of control. "I've got him." Jenny assured. She broke formation and sped toward Bulkhead.

Jenny grabbed onto his back and righted him. "Thanks Jen. I guess I need more practice." Bulkhead said sheepishly. "Just watch where you're going next time." Jenny quipped. The two rejoined the formation and continued toward Trypticon. By now most of the first wave of Vehicons was destroyed.

"Lord Megatron," Dreadwing began. "Send another squadron; the first one has been decimated." Megatron sent the reinforcements but the Autobots pressed onward toward Trypticon. Meanwhile, on the Nemesis, Megatron contacted Shockwave. "How long does the main cannon need to fully charge?" the Decepticon leader asked. "According to my calculations it will take approximately one hour for the proton cannon to reach full charge." Shockwave responded.

"Then begin the process now." Megatron ordered. Shockwave complied and almost as soon as he gave the order, Trypticon's tail pointed down at Washington D.C. It began to split open, revealing the proton cannon that could level cities. It began to glow with power as it began the charge up sequence.

"Optimus, Trypticon has initiated the firing sequence."Ratchet advised. "I estimate that you have one hour before it fires." The Autobots were now about ten miles away from Trypticon. "Understood. Autobots, split into your assigned teams and complete your objectives." Optimus and Bulkhead broke off and headed for the Nemesis while the rest made for Trypticon.

"Jenny, you and Jetfire head for Trypticon's mouth." Arcee suggested. "We'll start distracting him." Team One hung back while Team Two focused on taking out Trypticon's defenses. "Incoming flak!" Wheeljack warned. The Jackhammer performed a tight barrel roll before unleashing a volley of homing missiles. "ACTIVATE ANTI MISSILE SYSTEMS." Trypticon bellowed. The point defense cannons around his body opened fire and destroyed the incoming missiles.

"Scrap!" Wheeljack swore. "I have an idea. If we spread out and fire at once, we might be able to spread the AA." Arcee suggested. The three Autobots split up and attacked Trypticon from different angles. Now there were several targets that Trypticon's targeting system had to track. When Wheeljack fired his second volley of missiles, all but two of them took out at least a dozen of Trypticon's point defense turrets. This allowed Team Two to clear a path through the defenses.

"Alright Jetfire, you and Jenny should have a clear run." Arcee reported. "Thanks. Keep pounding him from the outside." Jenny said. She and Jetfire were almost at Trypticon's mouth and about to enter. They diverted all power to their engines and busted through the behemoth's metal teeth. "This is Jetfire, we're in." the scientist announced as he shifted into robot mode. Jenny folded away her wings but kept her mask up. "Excellent." Ratchet said. "Go straight ahead. You should come to a hallway that goes in two directions. Once you reach it, go right." Ratchet advised.

"LORD MEGATRON, I HAVE BEEN INFILTRATED." Trypticon reported. Megatron frowned. "Starscream! Trypticon has been infiltrated by the Autobots. Repel them at any cost!" he ordered. Just then a Vehicon picked up something on the scanner. "Two Autobots are approaching the Nemesis!" Megatron looked out the window and saw Bulkhead and Optimus on a direct course for the warship. The Nemesis opened fire with anti-aircraft cannons, but the two Autobots evaded them.

They landed on the flight deck and began to lay waste to the defending Vehicons with their own laser cannons. Megatron left the bridge and headed for the flight deck, but not before leaving Soundwave in charge. The Decepticon leader stormed up to the flight deck just in time to see Optimus and bulkhead land there. "Megatron, you will pay for raising Trypticon and using him to attack Earth." Optimus declared.

"I'll admit I am impressed by your new-found ability to fly, Optimus. However Trypticon _will _level Washington and every other city on Earth until the entire planet is burnt to a crisp." Megatron boasted. Optimus narrowed his eyes. "Bulkhead, we will take him together." Optimus said while drawing his sword. Bulkhead drew his Energon mace and shifted into a fighting stance. Megatron raised his right arm and fired at the two Autobots. They dodged out of the way and came at Megatron from two directions at once.

As they were about to strike, Megatron performed a roundhouse kick to Bulkhead's chest and punched Optimus in the face. The two slid backward. Optimus and Bulkhead activated their laser cannons and fired a furious volley at Megatron. A few shots hit their mark but the rest either missed or deflected off of Megatron's sword. Optimus charged Megatron again. This time Optimus turned around at the last second and hit Megatron with a quick blast from his rocket pack.

Megatron flew back and up off of the Nemesis. The blast left him partially stunned. "Quick, Bulkhead, into the Nemesis." Optimus ordered. The two Autobots made their way towards the bridge of the Decepticon warship. Meanwhile, inside Trypticon, Jetfire and Jenny were fighting their way past scores of Vehicons. Jetfire nailed one Vehicon with a twin barreled laser that deployed from his arm while Jenny hit two more with a salvo of four shoulder rockets.

"Nice shot Jen." Jetfire complimented after blasting another Vehicon. "You're not so bad yourself Jetfire." Jenny quipped. The two made slow and steady progress into Trypticon's inner workings. "All teams, I have good news. Optimus and Bulkhead are inside the Nemesis and on their way to the bridge." Ratchet reported. "Good luck Prime. I'm counting on you." Jenny reminded. "I know." The Autobot leader replied.

"We're at another fork mate. Which way?" Jetfire asked. "Turn left and keep going for 300 meters. You should arrive at a large locked door." The medic responded. Jetfire and Jenny headed in that direction and continued to fight off the Vehicon resistance.

Meanwhile, on the outside of Trypticon, Bumblebee, Arcee, and Wheeljack were busy fighting Dreadwing and his squadrons. Wheeljack slid in behind Dreadwing and began to fire his ship's cannons. "This is for Seaspray you slaghead!" he yelled. Dreadwing swerved out of the incoming fire and pulled a loop to evade. Wheeljack stuck with the Decepticon flyer, but couldn't pull enough lead for a shot.

"I can't get a good angle; can one of you help me out?" Wheeljack asked. Bee buzzed a response and headed for Wheeljack's position. Arcee followed him. Bumblebee attacked Dreadwing from the left with his blasters. Dreadwing broke right to evade but Arcee fired on him from the right. He reversed his turn but then went straight through Wheeljack's firing arc. A laser blast hit his wing which sent him spiraling out of control.

"Yeah! We got him!" Wheeljack exclaimed. "Don't celebrate yet. He's called in backup." Arcee countered. Sure enough, six Jet Vehicons bore down on the Autobots. They scattered in order to split the enemy's fire and regrouped to counter attack. While they were distracted Dreadwing took the opportunity to swing around the three Autobots and attack from behind.

The Jackhammer's scanners picked him up however. "Look out guys. Dreadwing's tryin' to pull a fast one." Wheeljack warned. Team Two turned around with three Vehicons still pursuing them. Dreadwing and the Vehicons fired everything they had left and the Autobots did the same. At the last second, Team Two split off while the Vehicons stayed their course. Dreadwing's ordinance destroyed the Vehicons while Dreadwing himself was able to evade the Autobots fire. Low on reinforcements and outnumbered, Dreadwing withdrew from combat and headed for the Nemesis.

Inside the Nemesis, Optimus and Bulkhead were having a relatively easy time fighting off the Vehicons inside the warship. Only ground Vehicons remained on board the Nemesis so they were easy pickings for the Autobot warriors. The two Autobots arrived at the bridge and Optimus immediately headed for the Spacebridge control panel. "Optimus duck!" Bulkhead yelled. The Autobot leader followed his subordinate's advice just as a devastating wave of sonic energy passed over him. Soundwave stepped out of the shadows and launched Laserbeak from his chest. It sped over to Bulkhead and blasted at him.

Optimus came out of his cover and began shooting at Soundwave. Soundwave dodged the blasts and used his long, tentacle like arms to use the helm console. He set the ship to list 40 degrees to starboard. He continued to fire his Sonic Blaster as the ship leaned ever more precariously to the left. The list was so sudden that it threw Knockout and Breakdown off guard. "Soundwave, what in Primus is going on?" Knockout asked in an irritated tone.

Soundwave showed them a live video feed of the bridge. Knockout and Breakdown could clearly make out Soundwave fighting Optimus and Bulkhead. Without another word, Knockout and Breakdown made a beeline for the bridge. On the way, they rallied any Vehicons that were still functional and told a few to wake up the Insecticons. In the meantime, Megatron came to and made his way toward the halls of the Nemesis. Eventually he came across Breakdown and Knockout.

"What is our status?" Megatron demanded. "Soundwave is under attack from Optimus Prime and Bulkhead. He is holding them off but we are on our way to relieve him." Knockout explained. Satisfied with Knockout's response, Megatron assumed leadership of the group that Knockout assembled.

Back on the Bridge, Bulkhead managed to disable Laserbeak and assisted Optimus with Soundwave. Realizing his tactical disadvantage, Soundwave bridged to a different area of the Nemesis. "All teams, we have control of the bridge… for now." Optimus reported. He accessed one of the consoles and sealed off the bridge.

Jenny smiled from cheek to cheek under her battle mask. _Just a little more and I'm home free. _She thought. Despite the fun and adventure she had with the Autobots, she wanted to get home as fast as possible. "Trypticon's Spark chamber should be directly ahead behind a large guarded door." Ratchet advised. Jenny snapped back to full attention. "This is it kid: The final push." Jetfire said.

They reached the door and stopped in their tracks to see Shockwave and Starscream guarding it. "Ah. So nice to finally meet you Jenny." Shockwave teased. "I must thank you for supplying Trypticon's new power supply." Jenny scowled at the Decepticon scientist. "Shut it Cyclops!" Jenny retorted. Starscream started to chuckle at Jenny's insult before Shockwave glared at him. "Stand down and you'll be spared." Jetfire promised.

"Tempting Jetfire, but I think we'll pass." Starscream replied. "Suit yourselves." Jenny quipped before she charged at Starscream. Jetfire followed suit and took aim at Shockwave. Starscream fired his blasters at Jenny, but she evaded them by running along one of the walls. She jumped off and delivered a right hook to Starscream's face. He struck Jenny with his claws but neither opponent did any major damage. Jenny then noticed something she should have during her first encounter with Starscream."Are those high heels?" She teased. "They're support struts!" Starscream yelled.

Shockwave charged his cannon's capacitors behind some cover while Jetfire blasted at his position. When the cannon reached full charge, Shockwave broke cover and returned fire. A powerful energon blast leapt out of Shockwave's cannon. Jetfire barely dodged it before firing another burst from his own weapon.

Back on the bridge of Nemesis, Optimus and Bulkhead heard Megatron and his reinforcements coming toward the bridge. Knockout attempted to open the door but the pass code no longer worked. "It seems as though the Autobots have changed the lock." Knockout reported. "Then _blast _the door open." Megatron ordered. The Decepticons pointed their weapons at the door and opened fire.

"Blast door structural integrity down to 80%." Bulkhead announced. Optimus contacted Team One. "We have a situation. The Decepticons are attempting to retake the bridge." Optimus said. "Blast door structural integrity down to 63%." Bulkhead reported. Jenny wasn't prepared to receive that information. She momentarily lost focus, allowing Starscream an opening to punch her squarely in the face. She flew backwards into a wall and landed in a heap on the floor.

"Jenny?" Optimus said. "Structural integrity at 34%." Bulkhead continued. Jenny shook off the blow and found cover to think. In less time than it takes for a human to blink, Jenny reached her decision. "Blow the Bridge." She said quickly, not wanting to hesitate for fear that she wouldn't be able to say the words. Optimus keyed in the self destruct sequence and locked the system. "Bulkhead, the time has come for our departure." Optimus decided. The Two Autobots blasted the windows open and flew out of them. A few seconds later, the Decepticons broke through the door.

Caught off guard, some of the Vehicons were swept out of the bridge due to the explosive decompression. The emergency force fields activated and sealed the bridge off shortly thereafter. Knockout glanced at one of the consoles and gasped. "Lord Megatron, the Autobots have activated the Space Bridge's self destruct sequence!" Megatron activated his comm link. "Soundwave, can you override the command?" Soundwave replied with text on the bridge's main view screen. NEGATIVE. SYSTEM LOCKED OUT. NO TIME TO BREAK ENCRYPTION. SPACE BRIDGE DESTRUCTION: IMMINENT

A few seconds later, the space bridge collapsed in on itself, leaving only a few chuncks of debris. Megatron raced to the flight deck, shifted into vehicle mode and rocketed toward Optimus and Bulkhead. "Incoming boss!" Bulkhead warned. The duo barrel rolled out of the way as Megatron charged at them guns blazing. The Decepticon leader reversed course and charged at Optimus again. Optimus returned fire but Megatron seemed to shrug off his hits.

Two of Megatron's blasts damaged Optimus's right wing, but thankfully missed the rocket pack. Bulkhead fired his own cannons which hit Megatron in his engine and right wing root. Megatron went into a brief spin before Optimus grabbed hold of him and began punching him. Megatron shifted into robot mode and shoved Optimus away. "Bulkhead, assist the other teams. I will handle Megatron." Optimus ordered. Bulkhead did as he was told and headed for Trypticon.

Optimus and Megatron stood… er… hovered face to face. "It's you and me Megatron. One shall stand…" Optimus began. "And one shall fall." Megatron finished. The combatants drew their swords and charged at each other with breakneck speed. Finally their swords clashed and clanged as each opponent struggled for an advantage.

Back at the entrance to Trypticon's spark, Jenny was busy helping Jetfire deal with Shockwave and Starscream to keep her mind off the fact that she just ordered the destruction of her ticket home. "You alright kid?" Jetfire asked. Jenny dodged a missile from Starscream by cart wheeling out of its flight path. "Let's focus on what we have to do here." She replied. As the fight raged on, Jenny and Jetfire came to a realization. "This is getting us nowhere." Jetfire observed. "I know, but what are we supposed to do?" Jenny responded.

"I think I have an idea." Jetfire said. "Hey, Starscream! Why are you helping Shockwave anyway?" The Decepticon Air Commander paused for a moment. "What do you mean?" Starscream wondered. "Isn't he the one who usurped your rightful place as Megatron's first lieutenant?" Jetfire suggested. "Do not listen to him. He is trying to play us against each other." Shockwave reasoned. "He does have a point though. You were the one who allowed the Space Bridge to get destroyed and allow two Autobots to escape to Earth." Starscream began. "And even after that, Megatron made you the first lieutenant when he unearthed you."

"I've been doing all the work while you were in that pod, and Megatron still gives more respect to you!" Starscream yelled. While the two Decepticons bickered, Jenny and Jetfire snuck into Trypticon's Spark chamber. "I'll watch the door. You plant the charges." Jenny said. Jetfire nodded in acknowledgement and began his work. Jenny leaned up against the door to see if she could hear Shockwave and Starscream.

"Maybe if you had an ounce of loyalty, Megatron would have kept you as his first lieutenant." Shockwave argued. "What do you know? You're always off playing with your toys while I'm doing the dirty work." Starscream shot back. "Please, it was the Vehicons who did the most damage to Cliffjumper." Shockwave reminded. Starscream was taken aback. "You know about that?!" Jenny laughed softly at the bickering bots. "THIS IS TRYPTICON. 5 MINUTES TO FIRING." Trypticon boomed. Caught by surprise, Starscream and Shockwave looked around.

"Where did they…" Shockwave began. The two Decepticons looked at each other and shouted "The Spark chamber!" in unison. They tried to get the door open, but Jetfire locked out the controls. "You might want to pick up the pace Jetfire. Shockwave and Starscream got wise to us." Jenny warned. "Almost done, just a few more charges." He answered.

Meanwhile, back in space, Megatron and Optimus were still fighting ferociously. Eventually, Optimus got the upper hand when he blasted Megatron with his blaster and followed up with a blast from his pulse rockets. Megatron flew backwards once again. He shifted into his vehicle mode and charged at Optimus, intent on ramming him. Optimus dodged out of the way and blasted Megatron again.

Just then, a message came from Jetfire. "All teams, the charges are in place." He reported. Optimus got in one last punch before activating his comm link. "All teams fall back." He ordered. Optimus and Team Two along with Bulkhead flew back toward Earth. Jetfire pulled out the remote trigger but noticed a problem. "Aw scrap." He swore. "What is it?" Jenny asked. He showed her the trigger. "My remote trigger must have been damaged during the firefight." He said. Jenny thought for a moment before saying. "I'll blow the charges. You focus on getting out in one piece." Jenny said.

"You sure?" he asked. "Absolutely Jenny answered with finality. "Good luck." Jetfire said before blasting out of Trypticon through a maintenance hatch. As soon as Jetfire was clear, Jenny activated each of the charges manually. She began to fly out the same access hatch Jetfire used when the charges began to detonate. Shockwave and Starscream heard the explosions and immediately bridged out of Trypticon. "CRITICAL FALIURE IN MAIN POWER CELL. DEMISE IMMINENT." Trypticon realized.

Jenny was having trouble out running the explosions but she eventually made it out of Trypticon and started toward Earth. Before she could make it into ground bridge range however, Trypticon exploded in a brilliant ball of flame that seemed to stretch on for thousands of miles. The Nemesis was able to withdraw before the explosion could reach them.

All of the Autobots walked back into the base… except for Jenny. "Where is she?" Optimus asked. "My trigger wasn't working so she offered to activate the charges manually." Jetfire explained. "Wait, I have her!" Ratchet explained. "She's headed toward Earth, but at incredible speed." Jenny was able to activate her force field before Trypticon exploded. Unfortunately, the force from the blast sent her hurtling toward Earth. "Her life signal is still active, but she's moving too fast for me to get ground bridge lock." Ratchet explained. Jetfire thought for a moment. "Can you calculate her trajectory and place a ground bridge along her projected path?" Jetfire wondered.

"It's worth a try." Ratchet decided. He calculated Jenny's descent path and opened a Ground Bridge at 1000 ft. When Jenny made it into the lower atmosphere, she applied her airbrakes. This affected her trajectory a bit so Ratchet adjusted for it accordingly. Jenny fell through the Ground Bridge and flew out the other end into the base before hitting the wall. As the Autobots gathered around her Jenny checked herself for damage. Thanks to her force field, there was very little.

"Alright Jenny!" Bulkhead shouted. "Yeah way to go Jen!" Miko agreed. "Indeed we are all in your debt." Optimus added. "You did good kid." Arcee complimented. Before Jenny could respond, Fowler called and requested that the Autobots meet him at Nellis Air Force Base. There, he gave a speech to the Autobots. "Thanks to you, Trypticon has been destroyed and the world is saved. I owe to you my life, my liberty, and my future. The President has asked me to award you the Congressional Medal of Honor for Conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of life above and beyond the call of duty."

The Autobots returned to their base happier than ever before. For Jenny, the joy was short-lived. She now had to face the possibility of being stuck in another dimension forever…

**On the Nemesis…**

"Trypticon's destruction is a huge blow to our cause. But we Decepticons must persevere in our quest for domination. One day, we will triumph over the Autobots and claim this planet as our own." Said Megatron.


	14. Chapter 14 Homesick

_**My Life as a Teenage Autobot**_

**Chapter 14: Homesick **

Jenny brooded on the couch in the Autobot base. All she could think about was her decision to tell Optimus to blow the Space Bridge. She hadn't wanted to put Optimus and Bulkhead in any unnecessary danger, but the fact that she had no way home weighed on her heavily. _There has to be some way to get back. _She thought even though she didn't entirely believe it.

Miko noticed Jenny's melancholy mood and decided to do something about it. "Jack, I'm gonna see if I can cheer Jenny up. Wanna come with?" She asked. Needless to say, Jack was apprehensive about the whole idea. "I don't think that's a good idea. Right now Jenny needs to be alone." He reasoned. Miko stared at Jack in disbelief. "She's already alone Jack. She needs the comfort of friends." Miko countered. "I'm kinda with Miko on this one." Raf spoke up.

Seeing that he was out voted, Jack begrudgingly agreed to comforting Jenny. The children took the elevator to the level that Jenny was on. Miko was eager to console Jenny, but Jack held a hand in front of her. He figured that they needed to start slow.

He cautiously approached the sofa as if it were a bomb. "Hey Jack, hey Miko, hey Raf." Jenny sighed while remaining still. All three of the human children were startled by the sudden greeting, but took it as a sign that Jenny was at least open to some company.

"Hey… so… what's up?" Jack asked Jenny nervously. He sat down to her left but gave her some space. Jenny turned to Jack and sighed. "I'm just contemplating the fact that I'm stuck here now." She lamented. "What do you mean?" asked Raf. Jenny explained to them how Optimus was going to use the Decepticons' Space Bridge to get her back home, but had to destroy it in order to prevent Megatron from retreating to Cybertron.

Even Miko didn't know what to say now. After a long and almost painfully awkward silence Miko had an idea. "I know, why don't we watch some TV?" she suggested. Miko grabbed the remote and turned the TV on. Unfortunately the channel it was on was playing the Wizard of Oz. More specifically it was playing the scene where Dorothy taps her heels together and says "There's no place like home."

The children had looks on their faces that expressed absolute shock, guilt, and worry. _I should have learned my lesson from the T-Cog Incident. _Miko thought, kicking herself mentally. Jenny stood up. "Thanks guys. I appreciate you trying." She said mechanically (no puns intended.) Jenny walked toward the elevator and headed topside. She sat down next to Cliffjumper's memorial. She brought her knees to her chest, put her face into her arms, and began to cry.

She cried because of the overwhelming feeling of separation she felt, the longing to be home once more, the wish to at least see her friends and family again. As Jenny continued to sob, she heard someone come up on the lift. "Go away. I don't want anyone to see me like this." Jenny said in between sobs.

Ratchet took a few steps forward before saying, "Optimus wanted me to check on you. He has become very concerned about your emotional state." Jenny lifted her head from her arms and turned around. "Why you?" Jenny wondered not meaning any offense of course. "Optimus is busy decrypting the Iacon Database… and I _am _your temporary physician." Ratchet reminded.

Jenny allowed herself a small smile at that. "So I hear you miss home." Ratchet presumed. Jenny's smile faded. "Yes." She answered. Ratchet looked up at the sky, specifically at the daytime moon. "I miss mine as well." Ratchet confided. Jenny looked at the medic for a moment. For as long as she'd known him, Jenny considered Ratchet to be a pain in the servos and a stick in the sludge. Now he was opening up to her? "Cybertron." Jenny realized.

Ratchet continued to look at the moon. "In its prime, Cybertron was a beautiful metropolis, full of life and activity. I t wasn't perfect, mind you, but it was home." Ratchet said with a sense of nostalgia. "But that was stellar cycles ago. The War for Cybertron left our home torn and ravaged. We were forced to find new homes on strange new worlds like this one." Ratchet lamented.

"Ratchet, I… do you think…" Jenny began. "…that we'll ever be able to return?" Ratchet finished. "The only thing I can think of that would make our planet habitable again is some lost artifact that the Ancients wielded."

Jenny wiped the coolant from her eyes. "You'll find a way." Jenny assured. "To get you home or to restore Cybertron?" Ratchet wondered. Jenny stood up and looked off into the sunset with new-found hope. "Both." She answered. As the two walked back toward the elevator, Jenny thanked Ratchet for the therapy session. It made her realize that she wasn't alone and that she could go to any of her new friends for comfort if she needed it.

They reentered the base, where Optimus was still decoding the Iacon database and the children were playing a videogame. Arcee Bumblebee and Bulkhead were talking with each other in front of the main computer. Jetfire was manning the communications.

"Hey kid. How are you?" Arcee asked. "Better Arcee, thanks Jenny replied. "We were just talking here and wanted to know if you wanted to learn some Cybertronian martial arts." Bulkhead offered. "Sure." Jenny accepted. To start, Arcee taught Jenny the basics of the Cybertronian Ninja style. It was difficult at first seeing as Jenny usually preferred the direct approach, but her small size and incredible agility allowed her to pick it up after a few sessions.

Jenny noticed that Bumblebee's boxing style was very similar to Earth boxing. Admittedly he learned it by combining Earth boxing with Cybertronian boxing. After just one session, Jenny was able to use her flight abilities to literally float like a scraplet and sting like Bumblebee.

Bulkhead's Brawler Style seemed more suited to XJ-8 what with its solid stances and strong powerful movements. However, always the quick learner, Jenny got the hang of it after some practice.

During a sparring session with Arcee, Optimus detected an Iacon tracking beacon who's signal was originating from the mountains in the China- Mongolian border. "Autobots, prepare to roll out." Optimus ordered. "Hey Optimus, if it's all the same to you, I'd like to sit this one out." Jenny said. "I have no objection but I would like to know why." Optimus answered.

"I haven't really spent that much time with Jack, Miko, and Raf and I'd like to get to know them more." Jenny replied. "Very well." Optimus said before walking away. Ratchet activated the ground bridge and the Autobots minus Jenny and Ratchet went through. "You sure about this Jenny?" Jack asked.

"Of course Brad. Optimus and the others could handle themselves before I got here." Jenny said before walking toward Miko and Raf. "Did she just call me Brad?" Jack asked in a perplexed tone. "Freudian slip. Yet another symptom of her homesickness." Ratchet reasoned.

**A/N: **You have no idea how long I've been waiting to have Jenny make a Freudian slip.


	15. Chapter 15 The Sword in the Stone

_**My Life as a Teenage Autobot**_

**Chapter 15: The Sword in the Stone**

Optimus, Jetfire, Arcee, Bulkhead, and Bumblebee stepped out of the Ground Bridge vortex and into the mist filled mountains of the Chinese-Mongolian border. Jetfire pulled out his data pad and marked the Iacon tracking beacon. "Two klicks due North." He reported. The team drew their weapons and carefully made their way across a narrow ridge. Meanwhile, Soundwave flew overhead with a fake Iacon Archive pod attached to his undercarriage…

**On the Nemesis…**

The Decepticons' warship was repaired since Trypticon's destruction; however the damaged crewmembers needed more time to heal. "How many available soldiers do we have?" Megatron asked Knockout. "Unfortunately, only 60 Ground Vehicons and 23 Flyers are battle ready, my lord. Only the Insecticons sustained minimal casualties." Knockout reported in a solemn tone. "Send a team of twenty of each type to accompany me to the real Iacon relic. Soundwave will distract the Autobots for as long as possible." Ordered Megatron.

"And what shall we do my liege?" Shockwave asked, referring to himself and Starscream. Megatron did not turn to face him. "You two will remain here and watch over the ship." He said while barely maintain control. "Assuming that you can perform that task without letting two Autobots slip past so they can destroy it." Both Starscream and Shockwave lowered their heads in shame. Without another word, Megatron left.

The Decepticon away team arrived at the Caucasus Mountain Range in Russia, where the relic was located. It did not take them long to find the relic, which was buried in one of the Mountains. Megatron looked more closely and realized what it was: the hilt of one of the most legendary weapons in Cybertronian lore. "The Star Saber; forged by Solus Prime herself." Megatron gasped.

When the Decepticons came to within a few feet of the sword, Megatron stepped forward and grabbed the hilt. He pulled with all his might to pull the sword out of its stone sheath, but the sword did not budge. In an act of frustration and desperation, Megatron blasted at the rock surrounding the sword, but alas, none of the rock was damaged. "The Star Saber is covering the rock in a protective shield!" the Decepticon leader explained. "We must keep the relic out of Optimus's hands at all costs."

**The Autobot Base…**

Jack, Miko, Raf, and Jenny were sitting on the sofa in the upper level of the silo. Jenny and Miko were conversing fluently in Japanese, pausing only to laugh at certain points. "So, what do think they're talking about?" Jack whispered. Raf shrugged. "I don't know. I can understand Bumblebee, not Japanese."

The two girls stopped talking to each other and turned to the boys. "Sorry about that." Jenny said. "It's been awhile since I've spoken Japanese. Miko and I were just discussing how annoying parents could be sometimes." Jack saw his chance to ask Jenny about something. "Jenny, speaking of home life, who's Brad?"

Jenny remained silent for a moment but decided it would be better for her to tell them. "Brad is my best friend." She began. "A bit clumsy sometimes, but he is the bravest, most loyal person I know." A smug smile spread across Miko's face. "Any chance that you two are…" she implied before Jenny interrupted with a quick "No." The robot girl's cheeks then flooded with light blue. "I mean… we've been…we're not yet… I'd like to… it's just…" Jenny stammered.

Miko burst out laughing at Jenny's apparent discomfort. "Miko!" Jack groaned. "Ignore her. Just pick up where you left off." Raf said. "Right… oh Brad is my age and he has an 8 year old brother named Tuck. Tuck's pretty much the opposite of his brother in that he is scared by the silliest things." Jenny continued.

"There's Sheldon who has an unwavering fascination with me. It can get creepy at times, but his skill with machines is second only to my mom's." Before Jenny could continue, Ratchet detected another Iacon beacon. "Optimus," he said over the comm-link. "I have found a new beacon." Static was the only response. "Optimus, do you read me? A second Iacon beacon has appeared and there are Decepticons in its vicinity." Ratchet reported.

Jenny excused herself and flew over to the computer hub. "I could investigate." She offered. "After your incident in Las Vegas you want to go in alone against not one but multiple enemies?" Ratchet asked incredulously. "It's not like we have much of a choice. Optimus and the others can't hear you and the Decepticons are after another relic. Besides, I've learned much since Las Vegas." Jenny reasoned.

Ratchet rubbed his metal chin before finally conceding. He opened a Ground Bridge to the new coordinates. Before going through, Jenny turned back to the children and said, "Wish me luck." Jenny came out of the swirling green vortex behind a large gray rock. She peered out from behind the rock and saw a huge excavation project underway. A team of Vehicons were cutting down part of a mountain with their blasters and a few Insecticons were hauling away the chucks that were already cut. Another team of Vehicons stood guard while Megatron supervised the operation. Something looking like a hilt of a sword was sticking out from the rock.

Jenny contacted Ratchet. "Hey, I think I found the relic. It looks like a giant sword." Ratchet's eyes widened. "Jenny, you _must _prevent Megatron from making off with that relic. Its power is too great to risk it falling into his hands." Ratchet warned. "I'll continue trying to contact the others, but for now, find a way to stall the Decepticons.

_I need to be careful. _Jenny thought. She spotted a rock on the ground and picked it up. Jenny took careful aim and threw the rock at Megatron when he wasn't looking…

Megatron felt something bounce off the back of his head. He whirled around and drew his cannon, ready to fire, but didn't see anything. He turned back around to supervise the excavation when something hit him again. "Who goes there?" Megatron demanded while turning back around. He pointed at two Vehicons. "You two. Search the area for any sign of an Autobot."

The Vehicons nodded in reply and started toward the place that Megatron was pointing. They surmised that an Autobot would be able to hide behind a particularly large gray rock directly in front of them. The two circled around the rock in opposite directions as they rounded the rock they came to face… each other.

"I have a bad feeling about this." One of them said. "You always say that." The other replied. Just then, something came hurtling out of the trees and tackled one of the Vehicons to the ground before using its blaster arm to blow the other's chest in.

Megatron heard the commotion of course, and sent four more Vehicons and an Insecticon to investigate. They found the two destroyed Vehicons and inspected the area around them. "Lord Megatron," said one of the search party. "I found footprints. They are very small sir." Megatron furrowed his brow. "_How _small?" Megatron asked. The soldier said they were about the size of an adolescent human female.

"Then Jenny did not go with the rest of the Autobots." Megatron concluded. "Destroy her before she can get word to Optimus." The bots acknowledged the order and continued their search. Out of the blue, a tree fell on top of the Insecticon, pinning him underneath thousands of pounds of fresh pine. The remaining four Vehicons fired blindly at a light blue blur that jumped and twirled around them.

"Lord Megatron, Jenny is…" he got out before receiving a swift right hook to the face. She dispatched another Vehicon with her eye lasers and a third with a volley of missiles. The fourth one got around Jenny and picked her up by her left boot. He held his blaster at her head and charged it up. Jenny simply pointed the bottom of her right boot at his face and blasted his head off with a beam similar to the ones in her palms.

Jenny heard Megatron order more reinforcements after her so she decided that now was the time to break cover seeing as his help would be spread out. She leapt out of the forest and activated the Gatling guns in her forearms. Charging at the Star Saber at full running speed, Jenny opened fire on the nearby Vehicons. Megatron turned to face her and opened fire with his own weapon.

Jenny dodged the blasts and continued running toward the Star Saber. She lept up and grabbed the hilt with her comparatively tiny hands and pulled with all the strength her Energon boosted servos would allow. "Grrrrr… why… won't… you… budge?" Jenny grunted as she tried to free the Star Saber. Even her pulse engines blasting at full power didn't make any difference.

Megatron walked up to Jenny backed up by his remaining troops. They raised their weapons at her. Jenny gave up trying to pull the sword free and dropped back to the ground. There she faced Megatron and his cronies, who had surrounded her. _So much for being careful. _She quipped to herself. "Well well. It seems I've captured the one who destroyed Trypticon, the one who made a fool of me, and the one who eluded me for weeks." Megatron boasted…

**Back in the Mongolian Mountains…**

** "**Ah bugger." Jetfire declared in frustration. "Every time we get close to the beacon it moves." The Autobots had been searching for what seemed like an eternity. "I believe that we are chasing a fake relic." Optimus said. Just then, a Ground Bridge opened and out came Ratchet. "Optimus, I've been trying to contact you, but it appears that you were being jammed." He surmised.

"Jenny is currently at the location of a real Iacon relic, the Star Saber… and she's alone fighting Megatron." Ratchet reported. Optimus's eyes widened. "Autobots, to the base!" he ordered. Soon the Autobots bridged back to the base and then to the real relic…

**At the Star Saber Excavation Site…**

As Jenny's mind raced to make a decision that wouldn't end her life, the Nemesis began lifting the section of mountain that the Star Saber was still stuck in. "You know, Megatron, I did have help." Jenny reminded. Megatron grinned. "Help that is now…preoccupied." Megatron countered.

Laser blasts seemingly came out of nowhere and slammed into some of the Vehicons. Megatron turned his head toward the incoming fire for a split second, leaving Jenny enough time to strike directly at the Decepticon leader. She threw a punch at Megatron's chest, but he blocked and swiped Jenny away like a fly.

She landed with both feet on the ground and took fresh aim at Megatron when she heard a Vehicon preparing to fire. She turned to see Bulkhead clobber the Vehicon with his Energon mace. "I've got your back." Bulkhead assured.

Megatron looked around for a moment. "Where is Optimus?" he inquired over the comm. He then saw a red and blue semi truck driving at top speed toward the slowly rising Star Saber. Megatron and four flyers shifted into vehicle mode and took off in pursuit of Optimus. They fired their blasters at the Autobot leader but he swerved to avoid them.

A conveniently shaped rock in front of the Star Saber provided a ramp for Optimus to use. He flew into the air at over 200 miles per hour. A laser blast caught his right side, but he continued undeterred toward his goal. Optimus shifted into Robot mode and grabbed onto the Star Saber. The sword began to glow with a blue aura. Meanwhile, Megatron and his cohorts pulled away and made for the Nemesis.

With a gentle tug, Optimus pulled the Star Saber free of its stone entrapment and plummeted toward the ground. The other Autobots finished dispatching the remaining Decepticons. They looked at what was happening in awe. "I loosened it for him." Jenny joked.

Optimus slammed into the ground with tremendous force, but the Star Saber saved him from any damage. Back in the bridge of the Nemesis, Megatron turned ordered a Vehicon to drop the Mountain on Optimus. The Energon Rope holding the Mountain deactivated, sending the whole thing tumbling down an incline. Optimus was going to be crushed!

"Optimus, retreat!" Arcee yelled. The Prime nonchalantly turned around and sliced through the mountain like it was butter. "No way." Jenny gasped. For once, Megatron was rendered speechless and held his mouth agape at what just happened. On his view screen he saw Optimus standing triumphantly with the Star Saber.

Optimus swung the sword in a circle and fired a wave of Energon at the Nemesis. It impacted the rear of the ship and damaged some of its engines. The warship fled the area as fast as it could. "We Decepticons, now face our darkest hour." Megatron lamented.

The Autobots returned to their base victorious. "I saw it with my own eyes, but I still can't believe it." Jenny said as she replicated Optimus's swinging motion. "I know. Now the Boss Bot has the Star Saber, and we might actually win the war." Bulkhead agreed…

**The Nemesis…**

With so few available crew members, security wasn't exactly a top priority on the Nemesis. This allowed Dreadwing to finally enact his plan of betrayal. He snuck into the vaults on the ship and pulled out the Forge of Solus Prime. He then activated a Ground Bridge using a Data Pad and left the Nemesis with the Forge.

The coordinates he set were for Mount Hotaka in Japan. He came out of the Bridge and closed it. The Decepticon defector then sent an encrypted message on every known frequency that humans could detect toward Jasper Nevada, a city that Soundwave said was in proximity to the Autobot Base.

**A/N: **For those of you who watch Transformers Prime, you will know where this is going. For those of you who don't, the next chapter will be the last. Thank you to everyone who read this story and to everyone who has given it praise. This story has been a true pleasure to write and apparently a pleasure to read. Thank you again for your support.


	16. Chapter 16 Keys to Victory

_**My Life as a Teenage Autobot**_

**Chapter 16: Keys to Victory**

**A/N: **I decided that the story needs to continue beyond this chapter in order for my overall plan for the story to work.

The Autobots and Decepticons battled fiercely under the night sky of Egypt. Both factions decrypted another set of Iacon coordinates; this time in one of the Great Pyramids. Due to their small sizes, it was Jenny and Arcee's job to go inside the pyramid and retrieve the relic. "Any idea what it could be?" Jenny asked. "Given my experience, I've learned to prepare for anything." Arcee replied. "This way."

The female robots turned right down a corridor that led deeper into the tomb. Both of them wished they could just Bridge straight to the relic, but there was too much interference coming from the relic's location. Ratchet attributed it to the massive power signature coming from the relic's location.

Meanwhile, Optimus Prime was busy wasting Vehicon soldiers with the recently obtained Star Saber. He wielded the weapon like a true master; slicing and slashing at all of the Decepticons that stood before him. Before long, all of the ground based Vehicons lay in ruin. Jetfire was still busy taking out the Jet Vehicons while Bulkhead and Bumblebee assisted Optimus.

Unbeknownst to the Autobots however, Knockout and two Vehicons were also inside the Pyramid. They were taking a different route than Jenny and Arcee, but one that led to the relic nonetheless. "Ugh, why does the relic have to be _here _of all places? This sand is going to ruin my finish." He whined. The two Vehicons just looked at each other and shook their heads.

Back on the Autobots' end, Jenny and Arcee found the Iacon relic. It was in the pharaoh's chamber. On top of the sarcophagus lay a golden artifact that was definitely Cybertronian. Arcee moved to pick it up when Jenny suddenly stopped her. "Hold on. We need to be careful about this." She warned. Arcee cocked an eyebrow in response. "In all the movies, every time someone removes an artifact from a tomb, a bunch of booby traps go off." Jenny explained.

Arcee rolled her optics. "Look Jenny, you can't believe everything you see in movies…" she began. "..but you can believe that we're taking that relic." Knockout finished. His ever present snug grin still remained etched in Jenny's memory banks. "You!" Jenny exclaimed. "You and I have a score to settle, Knockoff." Jenny growled. "It's Knockout!" the Decepticon medic exclaimed. Arcee fired on the Vehicon escorts while Jenny flew into Knockout. He activated his buzz saw and swung it at Jenny but she blocked with a small plasma shield that came from her right forearm.

Arcee made quick work of the two Vehicon soldiers with her arm blades and made her way toward the relic. She reached over and gently removed it from the top of the sarcophagus and examined it carefully. _I'm sure Optimus will know what this is. _She thought.

Meanwhile, Jenny had Knockout pinned against a wall. She raised her right hand and extended her nails to three times their normal length. "Wait, can't we be reasonable about this?" Knockout pleaded. Jenny let her nails rest just above Knockouts left headlight. "No! Please! I beg of you!"

Before Jenny could ruin Knockout's precious paintjob, the whole pyramid began to shake. Vents, opened up in the ceiling and began to pour sand into the hallways. "Jenny, we have to leave now!" Arcee shouted. Jenny quickly swiped Knockout across the face and ran toward the exit. Arcee shifted into vehicle mode and sped in the same direction.

Knockout shifted into vehicle mode as well, but his car form wasn't exactly best suited to the 90˚ turns of the Pyramid's passage ways. Eventually he made it out, but not before the Autobots escaped through their ground bridge. "Knockout, I need a status report." Megatron requested over the comm link. Knockout sighed. "The Autobots have the relic." He informed."Then you will explain yourself once you get back to the ship." Megatron replied coldly.

**At the Autobot Base…**

"I knew there was going to be a booby trap." Jenny bragged. "Alright kid, you were right about that." Arcee admitted. "But if I hadn't picked up the relic, we wouldn't have had good cover for our escape." The two exited the Ground Bridge where the rest of the Autobots were waiting.

"I take it you two have the relic?" Ratchet inquired. Arcee held the mysterious golden artifact as an answer. Optimus looked pleasantly surprised at what Arcee and Jenny had found. "It is one of the four Omega Keys." He realized. "What now?" Bulkhead wondered. "During the final days of the War for Cybertron, my old mentor Alpha Trion told me that he discovered a way to revitalize the planet in the form of the Omega Keys."

"Only the combined power of all four keys can restore Cybertron to its former strength. Unfortunately, the Decepticons captured most of Iacon before I could retrieve the Keys. I assumed that the Decepticons destroyed them, but now I see that Alpha Trion sent them to this planet for safe keeping." Optimus explained. "We have to find those keys before the Decepticons. Otherwise, they'll take credit for saving Cybertron and frame us as criminals." Jetfire realized.

"Optimus, I am receiving an encrypted message from Mount Hotaka, Japan." Ratchet suddenly announced. "It is from Dreadwing." Optimus thought for a moment. "What does the message say?" Optimus wondered. "I am asking that you meet me at these coordinates. I mean no harm." Ratchet read aloud. "Ha! He thinks we're going to fall for that trick? We're just going to ignore him right Optimus?" Jenny inquired.

Optimus stared back at the girl with a reproachful glance. "Optimus… you can't be serious." Jenny said in an astonished tone. "Dreadwing has a strong sense of honor. However, we will close the Ground Bridge as soon as everyone is out." Optimus answered. Ratchet keyed in the coordinates and brought the swirling vortex to life.

**Mount Hotaka…**

Dreadwing waited patiently in the mist of Mount Hotaka. He sent the message only one day earlier, but he figured the Autobots would not take haste in meeting him. He used this time to ponder his future. The renegade Decepticon did not make any plans past simply betraying Megatron, but he assured himself that his tactically gifted mind would think of something.

While Dreadwing mulled over his options, a Ground Bridge Vortex appeared in front of him. Out came every Autobot except Ratchet. "Dreadwing, why have you asked us to come here?" Optimus asked as the Bridge closed. Dreadwing gestured toward the Forge of Solus Prime. "To present a gift, for the Decepticon cause is one I no longer believe in." Dreadwing answered. Optimus retracted his battle mask. "Then I present my offer to you again. Join us and aid our fight against Megatron." Optimus offered.

Dreadwing shook his head. "Just because I am no longer on his side, that does not mean I am on yours. Giving you the Forge is the only assistance I shall supply." He explained. Optimus walked over to the Forge and picked it up. "What do you ask in return?" The Autobot leader questioned. "Only that you use it wisely." Dreadwing replied. Optimus thanked the Decepticon and ordered Ratchet to Bridge them back to their base.

After the Autobots' Bridge closed, Dreadwing activated his and returned to the Nemesis. Megatron was waiting for him. "Where have you been Dreadwing?" he wondered. "I was scouting for Energon deposits in Japan, My Lord." Dreadwing replied. "If you were scouting for Energon, why was I unable to locate you via tracking beacon?" Megatron questioned. Dreadwing maintained a poker face. "The beacon must be faulty. Knockout and Breakdown…" Dreadwing began. "The Forge of Solus Prime also went missing around the time that you did. Isn't that curious?" Megatron interrupted.

Dreadwing was beginning to worry that Megatron had figured everything out. It certainly didn't help that the Seeker couldn't come up with a good sounding answer for that question. Before he could do anything, Megatron stabbed him through the Spark. He leaned in close to Dreadwing's face and said, "I had such high hopes for you." Megatron fired his fusion cannon and Dreadwing flew back into a wall before collapsing to the ground.

**Back at the Autobot Base…**

"What's so special about that hammer anyway?" Jenny wondered. "The Forge of Solus Prime creates whatever the user wants out of any material; provided that the user is a Prime." Optimus explained. "Okay… how does that help us?" Jenny inquired. Optimus turned to the Ground Bridge. "I will show you."

Optimus activated the Forge, which began to glow with a blue aura. He swung the tool into the Ground Bridge with great force. Jenny and the rest of the Autobots noticed that the Ground Bridge increased in size with every strike. After a few minutes, Optimus finished his work. "By the Allspark!" Ratchet gasped. "Optimus turned the Ground Bridge into a Space Bridge." Jetfire observed.

"Jenny, you can go home now!" Bulkhead exclaimed. Jenny smiled a bit. "Yeah. I guess I can." She answered. Bumblebee spouted off a string of beeps and buzzes with a confused inflection. "Yes Bee, I still miss my home… but I want to stay here a bit longer. At least until after we restore Cybertron.

All of the Autobots gave her strange looks. "It's just that you all saved me. Three times. And I feel that I owe it to you to help restore your planet." She reasoned. Optimus knelt to face Jenny. "If you wish to help us then that is your choice. However, I recommend that you ask your mother for permission." Optimus suggested.

Jenny used Ratchet's computer to contact Dr. Wakeman. It took, some convincing, but she eventually agreed to allow Jenny to stay. After Jenny finished talking with her mom, Ratchet decoded a new set of coordinates. This time, the location was in Siberia…


	17. Chapter 17 Scavenger Hunt

_**My Life as a Teenage Autobot**_

**Chapter 17: Scavenger Hunt**

"Aw great. _Another _frozen wasteland." Bulkhead groaned. The Autobots searched the harsh Siberian landscape for the second of the four Omega Keys. Unfortunately a sudden blizzard hampered their progress. "What's the problem? You guys aren't equipped to deal with cold weather?" Jenny questioned. Optimus explained that temperatures below freezing hampered their functionality.

"Jetfire, how are things in the sky?" Optimus asked. "No sign of Decepticons yet Prime. I'll keep my optics peeled." Jetfire assured. The Autobots walked for a few more miles until they were only meters away from the relic's coordinates. They couldn't physically see the pod, but Ratchet assured them that the coordinates were correct.

Using her X-Ray vision, Jenny discovered that the Iacon Storage Pod was buried several meters below the ground. "How are we going to get the relic if it's all the way down there?" Arcee wondered. "Don't worry guys. I've got this." Jenny assured. Her legs merged together to form a drill bit that could easily bore into the frozen soil. After a few seconds, she made it to the pod and brought it back to the surface.

"Did somebody order an Iacon relic?" Jenny joked. Optimus took the pod and twisted the top off, revealing the Omega Key inside. "Two down, two to go." Bulkhead declared. The Autobots were about to bridge back when Bumblebee raised a question in his trademark string of bleeps and buzzes. "I think I know how to solve that problem, Bee." Bulkhead assured…

Long after the Autobots left Siberia, the Decepticon arrived to retrieve the relic themselves. "The Iacon relic is just ahead my Lord." Knockout reported. He and a team of ten Vehicons approached the pod cautiously, wary of a surprise attack by the Autobots.

The search team found the pod resting in the snow and leaning slightly to the left. Knockout gestured toward one of the Vehicons. "You! Open the pod." He ordered. The Vehicon nodded and complied with his order. He twisted the lid counterclockwise and pulled it off. He was not prepared for what he found. The pod exploded in a brilliant flash before the word "GRENADE!" was even out of his vocal processor.

The Vehicon who opened the pod perished instantly, while shrapnel created from the pod damaged the other nine. By some miracle, Knockout didn't receive any damage. "Knockout here; the Autobots found the relic long before we did." He reported. "I think Soundwave may be losing his touch."

"The Autobots have the same database that we do. Not to mention that Optimus spent more time in the Hall of Records than Soundwave did." Megatron reminded. _Oh sure. _Knockout thought. _Whenever Soundwave falls short it's not his fault, but whenever anyone else fails they're incompetent. _

Knockout and the surviving Vehicons Bridged back to the Nemesis. After delivering his full report to Megatron, Knockout retired to Sickbay where he found Breakdown working to repair one of several damaged Vehicons. "What is our progress old friend?" Knockout inquired. "40% of the wounded are back to combat status and a further 20% will be ready in the next week." Knockout allowed himself a grin. "Finally. Some good news."

**At the Autobot Base…**

Jenny dodged a punch from Bulkhead and leaned sharply to the left to avoid a roundhouse kick from Arcee. She swerved away from Bumblebee's right jab and countered with a left hook. The blow connected and sent the scout flying back into a wall. Bulkhead took another swing at Jenny with his Energon Mace, but Jenny rocke jumped out of the way and kicked him in the face.

Arcee tried to grab Jenny, but the teen hero caught Arcee in a hold first and threw her into some equipment that belonged to Ratchet. "Jenny, I needed that!" he complained. "Sorry." Jenny apologized. "Girl just can't help herself. She's got a mean swing." Bulkhead chuckled.

Ratchet was going to give all four f them a stern talking to when Optimus decoded another set of coordinates from the Iacon Database. The Autobots rolled out to investigate.

**Meanwhile…**

Megatron placed Operation Iacon on hold for the time being in order to investigate an Energon deposit near the Ganges River in India. "Good news, my liege." Shockwave reported. "According to my calculations, there is enough here to satisfy our demand."

Megatron nodded his head. "Excellent. Begin mining operation immediately." The Nemesis lowered its transfer tube to the ground and began off loading bots and materiel to mine the Energon. "Soundwave, are the Autobots otherwise engaged with the Iacon Relics?" Megatron asked. The loyal communications officer displayed the Autobots' location on his visor display." Megatron dismissed Soundwave with a nod and returned his focus to the mining operation.

**At the Autobot Base…**

The Autobots bridged back with the third Omega Key in their possession. "We're so close I can taste it." Bulkhead declared. "Indeed Bulkhead. We are only one Key away from possessing the ability to restore our home." Optimus noticed something peculiar about Arcee. "Is something wrong?" he prodded.

Arcee looked up at Optimus. "The Cons didn't even try to stop us this time. I'm wondering if we're just doing the dirty work for them." Optimus shook his head. "Whomever restores Cybertron will receive the accolades." He assured. This seemed to calm Arcee a bit and she dropped the matter.

Another hour later, Optimus decoded the final Iacon entry…

**A/N: **I apologize for not uploading for a while. I've been in Washington D.C. for the past week and haven't gotten many chances to write. Don't forget to comment and check out my other stories.


	18. Chapter 18 Restoration

_**My Life as a Teenage Autobot**_

**Chapter 18: Restoration**

The last Iacon relic resided in an ancient temple deep within the jungles of Peru. After about an hour of hacking through the local flora, the Autobots finally arrived at the base of the temple. Optimus sent Arcee and Jenny inside to retrieve the relic while he and the others remained outside to guard the entrance.

Not wanting to repeat the incident at the pyramids of Giza, the two female Autobots took care to disable the booby traps that they came across. It was long and tedious work, but well worth the extra time. The two retrieved the final Omega Key and bridged back to the base along with the other Autobots.

"So Optimus, when do we get to revive Cybertron?" Bulkhead wondered. "I am afraid that we cannot venture home yet, for we still need the location of the Omega Lock." Optimus replied. The other Autobots just gave him confused looks. "Wait, I thought you said this was the last Iacon relic?" Arcee questioned.

"It is." Optimus began. "The Omega Lock is located on Cybertron, however its exact coordinates are unknown. Before we go home, we must decipher the location of the Omega Lock, for it is the conduit that channels the Omega Keys' energy."

"Ratchet, I want you and Jetfire to begin analysis of the Keys to see if they might point us in the right direction." Optimus ordered. "We'll get right on it." Jetfire declared. However, after hours of examining the Keys, the two scientists made little progress- if any at all. "Ah bugger." Jetfire spat. "Come on Jetfire. We have to do this for Cybertron." Ratchet reminded. "I know, I know." Jetfire replied. "But we've looked over these things for hours and don't even know which hemisphere the Omega Lock is located."

More examination and scanning produced no results. "Agh, come on!" Jetfire exclaimed. In an act of frustration, Jetfire slammed one of the Omega Keys into another. "Jetfire!" Ratchet scolded. "Ratchet… I'm… I…" he stuttered. Ratchet was about to verbally grind Jetfire into dust, when he noticed something. The Omega Keys suffered no damage. Instead, they became fused together.

"Now that is interesting." Ratchet observed. The two scientists added the remaining two Keys so that they formed a cross configuration. The Keys leapt into the air and projected a holographic globe of Cybertron. A flashing red dot denoted the Omega Lock's position. "There." Jetfire indicated.

"Optimus, everyone, we have the location of the Omega Lock." Ratchet announced. The Autobots gathered around the work station and anticipated the coordinates. "We have determined that the Omega Lock is located in the Northern Hemisphere, in the middle of the Sea of Rust." Ratchet explained.

"Autobots, prepare to roll out." Optimus ordered. "We will need every weapon, every tool, and every method at our disposal." The Autobots went to the storage vaults to collect their preferred item. Bumblebee chose the Magnetizer, Bulkhead chose the Forge of Solus Prime, Arcee chose the Apex armor, Jetfire chose the Spark Extractor, and Jenny chose the Phase Shifter. "Today, we venture to Cybertron to restore our home. We must remain alert. Though Megatron does not possess a Space Bridge, I doubt that will stop him from finding a way to thwart us." Optimus assured.

"Autobots, transform and roll out!" the Prime declared. The Autobots charged through their Space Bridge and arrived on the desolate and war torn surface of Cybertron. Jenny had seen horrible things before but this ranked among the top five. Nothing seemed to be intact from the buildings to the highways and even the ground seemed to be in a state of disrepair.

"Oh my gosh…" Jenny gasped. "_This _is Cybertron?" Optimus surveyed the barren landscape with a familiar sense of melancholy. "Indeed. The Great War devastated the planet. But, with the help of the Omega Keys, this will become a mere memory." The Autobots didn't have to go far to reach the Sea of Rust and after a short trek, they reached the coordinates indicated by the Omega Keys.

The Keys themselves began to glow a brilliant light blue as a giant blue ring appeared on the ground. A grand structure rose from the ground consisting of the aforementioned ring and four pillars along the circumference. The center of the structure housed the receptacles for the Omega Keys. The Omega Lock finished rising from the ground and the Autobots took a minute to admire it.

The Autobots gave a chorus of admiration for the imposing device. After what seemed like eternity, Optimus snapped out of his awe filled daze. "Jetfire, take to the skies and patrol the area." He ordered. Jetfire nodded and shifted into his vehicle mode before rocketing into the sky. "Bulkhead, Bumblebee, Arcee, Jenny; each of you will take an Omega Key. I will keep watch from the ground." The rest complied with their respective orders.

Just before the Autobots could insert the Omega Keys into the Omega Lock, Jetfire gave a frantic warning. "Optimus, we have incoming!" Optimus turned his attention away from his task and looked up. "What do you see Jetfire?" he asked. "I don't believe it but… it's the Nemesis." Optimus's optics widened in shock. He expected Megatron to catch up to them, but not that fast. _How did he get here that quickly? _Optimus thought.

**Flashback 48 Hours…**

"Are you actually going to go through with this?!" Starscream exclaimed. "We have little choice Starscream. The Autobots are close to finding the Omega Keys. Too close for us to start building another Space Bridge." Megatron explained. "But, we don't have any idea how the engines will handle the Red Energon!" Starscream protested. "That is a risk that we must be prepared to take. I trust Shockwave to proceed with the appropriate amount of caution."

"Yes… your new Second in Command…" Starscream growled with distaste. "In any case, the mining operation is nearly complete and we need to head out immediately." Megatron reminded. "Now, return to the Harbinger and resume supervision of our work there." He ordered. Starscream bowed his head in defeat. "Yes, my lord." He bridged to the coordinates to supervise the project.

"Shockwave, meet me in the reactor chamber and prepare the Red Energon." Megatron ordered. Long story short, Megatron and Shockwave placed the Red Energon into the reactor which increased the Nemesis's speed exponentially. So exponentially that they arrived at Cybertron in a matter of hours as opposed to weeks under normal full engine power. They found the Autobots by tracing the massive energy signature that the Omega Lock put out.

"I am quite impressed, Shockwave." Megatron praised from the flight deck of his warship. "Decepticons, begin our assault!" Megatron and a legion of Jet Vehicons and Insecticons shifted into Vehicle mode and launched off of the flight deck. The massive formation dove toward the Autobots like a swarm of angry bees… which is appropriate considering half of them resembled insects.

Jetfire desperately tried to ward off the incoming attackers, but they proved too numerous for his to handle. He dove back toward the ground in order to bring the assailants within range of the other Autobots' weapons. With the Nemesis providing supporting fire, the Decepticons continued their downward charge. Optimus drew the Star Saber and shot several energy waves up at the Decepticons. The rest of the Autobots joined him in returning fire.

The Autobots' attacks took out a good number of Decepticons, but the evil robots continued their assault anyway. They shifted into robot mode and charged the Omega Lock. Optimus sent wave after wave of energy at the attacking Decepticons and his friends backed him up with covering fire. Vehicon after Vehicon fell to the Autobot defenders. Just then, Jetfire swooped down and dropped the Spark Extractor in the middle of a group of Vehicons.

The weapon detonated and shorted out the circuits of every Vehicon with 200ft of its position. Meanwhile Arcee smashed Decepticons left and right with the Apex armor alongside Bulkhead who pounded on an Insecticon with the Forge of Solis Prime. Bumble fused several Vehicons together with the Magnetizer and Jenny used the Phase Shifter to take down her opponents from the inside. Optimus got a few hits on the Nemesis, forcing it to withdraw to a higher orbit over Cybertron.

The battle raged for several minutes and eventually, Megatron was the only Decepticon left standing. The Autobots surrounded him and brought their weapons to bear. "Surrender, Megatron!" Optimus demanded. "It's over." Suddenly, Ratchet detected something on his scope. "Optimus, reinforcements just arrived! Another Decepticon warship." The Autobots looked up and sure enough, the warship was descending toward the Autobots.

"Is that the Harbinger?" Arcee asked in shock. "What else could it be? The Cons must have repaired it while we were out looking for the Keys." Jetfire replied. A Ground Bridge opened up not far from the Omega Lock and out stepped Knockout, Starscream and Soundwave along with more Vehicons and Insecticons. Each of the Decepticon officers held a pod in their giant robot hands. The three pods contained the Autobots' human companions.

"Hehehehe. I believe it is time for _you_ to surrender Optimus." Megatron said smugly. "Unless you want your human friends to die once they are exposed to the toxic atmosphere." Starscream scratched Jacks pod with his claws to drive the point home. "Don't listen to them guys!" Miko yelled. "Yeah, use the keys yourselves!" Jack agreed. Optimus just stood there in stunned shock and utter disbelief. "Autobots… stand down." He ordered in dismay. Reluctantly the Autobots threw down their weapons.

"Good. Now, hand over the Omega Keys." Megatron demanded. Optimus retracted his mask. "The children first." He countered. Megatron shook his head in disagreement. "I am not willing to trust you implicitly. How about this? I will give you one child in exchange for each key." Megatron proposed. Optimus lowered his head in thought. "Optimus, don't do it!" Raf pleaded. "We'll understand." Miko spoke next. "Raf's right. We knew the risks involved. If this is how it ends…" Miko couldn't finish because she started to get choked up.

"It's you're call Optimus." Jenny said. Optimus looked back at Megatron. "I accept your offer." He agreed, the words more bitter than black coffee. "I knew you would see reason Optimus." Megatron teased. Optimus turned to Bumblebee as a way of telling him to give Knockout the first key. Bumblebee walked over to the deranged doctor and handed him the Omega Key. Knockout took the Key and handed over Raf.

Next, Bulkhead walked over with his key and gave it to Soundwave. The communications officer, in turn, gave Bulkhead the pod that housed Miko. She turned around and stuck her tongue out at her former captor. Before Jack's exchange happened, Megatron had a thought. "I think that the one entrusted by Optimus should be worth two Keys." Jenny and Arcee exchanged looks before walking toward Starscream. His smug grin was nearly enough for both to want to wipe it off his face. For Jack's sake, they traded the Keys peacefully.

Starscream gave one of the Keys he received to Megatron. "Finally. Now, bear witness to the power of the Omega Keys!" Megatron declared. He and his subordinates inserted the Omega Keys into their receptacles and keyed in a set of coordinates on the control panel. A pool of energy formed in the center of the ring and a brilliant beam of energy burst from it.

The bolt made contact with a destroyed building. After a few seconds, the beam dissipated and the once ruined building looked good as new. "Whoa." Jenny gasped. Megatron smiled widely. "I just thought of something. Why conquer one world when I can have two?" he reasoned. Megatron keyed in a new set of coordinates and the beam shot straight up into the air at speeds exceeding the speed of light. Optimus's optics widened with realization. "You're cyber forming Earth!" he exclaimed. "I think I shall rename it: New Kaon." Megatron boasted.

Seconds later, the beam made impact with Earth. Agent Fowler was in close proximity and looked out his window when he heard the beam strike the ground. "What in the name of Betsy Ross?" he gasped. Meanwhile in the Autobot base, Ratchet picked up the beam too. "Optimus I am reading a massive energy signature impacting the Earth's surface." He reported. "Don't do this Megatron!" Optimus pleaded. "The humans will die!" Megatron only grinned. "That is of no consequence. My priority is the survival of _our _race. Not theirs."

Optimus's mind raced to think of a way to shut down the Omega Lock. _Destroying it is the only way. _Optimus realized. Unfortunately, the Star Saber was out of his reach and the Decepticons had their weapons at the ready should he try to pull anything. Jenny was way ahead of him on that one. She fired gas, smoke, and flash missiles from her shoulders to blind the Decepticons. "Optimus now!" she screamed. The Decepticons fired blindly as they tried to reestablish visual contact.

Optimus seized the moment and picked up the Star Saber. _Forgive me Alpha Trion. _He thought. The Autobot leader charged through the smoke and laser fire as the other Autobots resumed fire. At the last second, he leapt into the air and brought his blade down on the Omega Lock. The device exploded in a shower of debris and the beam fizzled out. "Ratchet, bridge us back now!" Optimus yelled. A Space Bridge vortex opened up and the Autobots retreated through it.

After the smoke cleared, Megatron ordered his forces back to their ships. Meanwhile, the Autobots sulked back into their base defeated. Ratchet closed the Ground Bridge and turned toward his friends. "What happened?" he asked. For a moment, everyone remained quiet. "Somebody say something!" Ratchet demanded. Bulkhead finally spoke up. "Optimus… destroyed the Omega Lock."

Ratchet looked at his old friend in shock and disbelief. "What? You destroyed our only hope of ever reviving Cybertron? Optimus… we _needed _that." Jenny stepped in. "You weren't there Ratchet. And it's not your place to question a battlefield decision. "It. Most. Certainly is!" he exclaimed. "There _had _to be another way."

"It wasn't that simple." Jack explained. "Megatron was using the Omega Lock to attack the Earth." Raf added. "Optimus save our planet." Miko argued. Ratchet could no longer contain himself. All the frustration, pain, and anger within him exploded at that moment. "What about _our _planet? All of our struggles and energon spilled and countless sacrifices? For nothing?!"

"Look. Right call or wrong, what happened is done." Jetfire began. "But Megatron changed the rules when he put the children into play. Out of nowhere, the comm link's tri tone sounded and Agent Fowler appeared on the main monitor. "Prime?! The Pentagon's about to go to DEFCON 1. I need to know what we're dealing with." Fowler reported. Optimus cocked an optic brow. "To what are you referring Agent Fowler?" he wondered.

"Maybe you should see for yourselves." Fowler suggested dryly. The Autobots boarded the main lift and rose to the out of the base. What they saw took them all by surprise. A massive citadel pierced the blue sky over Nevada. The black structure literally stuck out like a sore thumb amidst the mesas of the desert. "Megatron has begun the first step of the cyber forming of Earth: The construction of his Fortress." He observed.

"But why Jasper?" Arcee questioned. "Because," Optimus began. "The Decepticons have found the location of our base…"

**A/N: **BUM BUM BUUUUM Sorry to leave on that cliff hanger but that seems like a good place to stop. And don't tell me that I combined Regeneration with Darkest Hour because I already know that. For real this time, the next chapter will be the last. Don't worry though. I'm going to write a sequel called: _**My Life as a Teenage Beast Hunter.**_


	19. Chapter 19 Evacuation

_**My Life as a Teenage Autobot**_

**Chapter 19: Evacuation**

**A/N: **This will be the last chapter, but don't worry. I will continue the story in the sequel that I mentioned earlier. Thank you to everyone who read this and gave it praise. You have no idea how much I appreciate your support.

From his perch on the Nemesis's flight deck, Megatron began to deliver a speech to a massive armada of Jet Vehicons. The Omega Lock energy created that created them gave them silver armor and red Decepticon emblems. Megatron immediately placed these elite soldiers under Starscream's command, after which he dubbed them: Seekers.

"Fellow Decepticons, it is truly a tragic day…" Megatron began. "For all hope of restoring Cybertron is lost thanks to the treachery of Optimus Prime and the Autobots!" The Vehicons stood in silence and waited for Megatron to continue. "However, we have a chance to rebuild Cybertron here on Earth. Decepticons, transform and rise up!"

"I thought he'd never ask!" Starscream exclaimed. "Launch my armada! Attack! Attack! Attaaack!" he commanded as he leapt off of the flight deck and transformed into his vehicle mode. The Seekers followed suit, diving down on the Autobot base like a swarm of angry locusts. The Decepticon formation unleashed a storm of laser and missile fire at the Autobots standing on top of the roof.

The blasts tore into the rock and the metal elevator door as the Autobots returned fire with all the strength they could muster. Just then, Agent Fowler arrived on the scene in his Bell UH-1 Huey helicopter. Bulkhead noticed his arrival and asked "Agent Fowler, what are you doing here?" To which Fowler replied: "My _job_, two ton." He steered his helicopter toward the Seeker formation before opening fire with his 30mm chain gun.

Jenny and Jetfire gave each other a quick glance before taking to the skies themselves. They used every weapon, every maneuver, every trick they knew to down the Decepticons. Unfortunately, for every Seeker they shot down, two more took its place. The Autobots on the roof tried to assist from the ground, but the Seekers either moved to fast or maneuvered evasively to avoid fire. Optimus downed groups of six at a time with the Star Saber, but again, the Seeker's numbers more than made up for their losses.

Meanwhile, Fowler picked up two Seekers who seemed intent on making sure that nothing remained of his aircraft once they finished. He leaned hard on the control stick, causing the chopper to strafe left, but the Decepticon jets could more than outmaneuver the Earth helicopter. One of them landed a shot on the starboard side door which vaporized it instantly. Miraculously, Fowler retained control and none of the aircraft's critical systems received damage. _That was too close. _He thought in relief.

Still attempting to evade his assailants, Fowler contacted NORAD. "Air Defense Command, this is Special Agent William Fowler. I am under stack and requesting immediate air support." No response came as red laser blasts streaked past his windscreen. "Come on Air Defense Command." Fowler urged, wishing that Jetfire or Jenny could assist him. Unfortunately they found themselves wrapped up in a fur ball of Jet Vehicons. Just as Agent Fowler thought the Cons would do him in, the two Seekers suddenly exploded.

When Fowler spotted the cause of his rescue, he could hardly believe it. "Well I'll be triple dipped." He said in surprise. The Jack Hammer broke away from Fowler's aircraft and blew two more Seekers out of the sky. "Did you really think I was going to let you guys have all the fun?" Wheeljack teased.

"Yeah! Jackie's back!" Bulkhead exclaimed. Ratchet could believe this turn of events either. "Wheeljack, why…" he began. "We're on the same team Doc. Always have been, always will be." The Wrecker cut in. Despite Wheeljack's arrival, the battle still leaned in the Decepticons' favor. Exhausted, Jenny and Jetfire returned to the roof, leaving Fowler and Wheeljack to deal with the Seekers.

Realizing their position, Optimus decided on retreat. "Autobots, into the base!" The Autobots complied as they rode the elevator back down to the command center. Ratchet turned away from his station. "Optimus, what is going on?" He wondered. "Megatron is invading Jasper. We have no choice but to abandon the base." Optimus replied.

"Bulkhead, Arcee, Bumblebee, you will depart with your human companions first." Optimus continued. "Each of you will bridge to different coordinates." Jenny flew up to Optimus's eye level. "We're splitting up?" she questioned. "Shouldn't we stick together?" Jack concurred. Optimus shook his head."The Decepticons have almost every advantage now.

"Only by splitting up will we have a chance at survival." Ratchet activated the ground bridge and keyed in the coordinates for Bumblebee and Raf. "There is little time but I will try to remain brief. To serve with you has been the greatest honor and the greatest privilege I have ever known. I bid you all safe journeys."After Bee and Raf departed, Ratchet keyed in a new set of coordinates for Arcee and Jack. Bulkhead and Miko departed after them, completing the human-Autobot pairing evacuation.

Next came Jetfire. He requested his own coordinates. "Till next time Optimus." Jetfire said. "You too Little Sheila." Jetfire added with a wink. Jenny gave a small smile at the scientist before he departed. Ratchet decided to leave next. "I… never thought it would end like this." He lamented. Optimus met his gaze. "Neither did I old friend." Ratchet ran through the Space Bridge. Optimus walked over to the Space Bridge control panel and keyed in the coordinates for Jenny's dimension.

"It is time for you to return to your home." Optimus said. Jenny started to walk toward the Space Bridge, but stopped just before the entrance. She turned around and asked "What about you?" Optimus hesitated for a moment because he knew how Jenny would react to his answer. "I will stay and ensure that the Decepticons do not follow." He answered.

"No. I'm staying with you." Jenny refused. "Jenny, we do not have time to argue." Optimus countered. A nearby explosion rocked the base and underlined Optimus's statement. Jenny turned back toward the Space Bridge. "Thank you for everything Optimus." Jenny said. "You've become something of a father to me." Jenny revealed before beginning her walk into the vortex. Every step made her feel worse inside. Leaving Optimus to his fate completely went against her altruistic nature. _You've already spent too much time here._ Jenny reminded herself. _You need to return to your home, back to your friends. Back to Mom. _

After what seemed like eternity, Jenny crossed into her mother's lab for the first time in months. Nora was using a blow torch for an experiment when Jenny returned. She lifted up the welding mask and ran over to her daughter. The two shared a long embrace. "Hey mom." Jenny greeted. She proceeded to tear up. All of the feelings she'd suppressed during her walk through the Space Bridge flooded her mind at that point. After the embrace, Nora noticed the Autobot emblem on Jenny's arm. "Young lady, where did you get that?" she asked in annoyance. "It's a long story." Jenny replied. Nora's expression softened with realization.

"I know you kept me informed from the other dimension, but what exactly did you find on the other end of the portal?" Nora wondered. Jenny started from the very beginning when she first met Starscream and told Nora everything that happened to her during her time with the Autobots. The scientist's expression changed only slightly during parts of Jenny's story and she never interrupted. Jenny waited anxiously for her mother's response.

"I am immeasurably happy for your safe return and for the help you've provided to these Autobots." Nora began. "However, I have much work to do if I am to send you back there." Jenny's eyes widened. "What?" Jenny gasped. Nora adjusted her glasses and stood up straight. "From what you've told me, you have formed a strong bond with the Autobots. More importantly their current situation indicates that they will need all the help they can get." For the first time in the past few hours Jenny smiled from cheek to cheek. "Thank you, mom, but how do you know what you need?" she wondered.

"Ratchet sent me a parts list for a Space Bridge just before you arrived." Nora answered. "I'll have to pull some strings, but I should have the required parts within a week or so." Jenny wanted to return the next day, but decided that she could wait that long. Besides, she still needed to tell Brad, Tuck, and Sheldon about her adventure. So despite the pain of leaving Optimus, Jenny reminded herself that now she was safe. Now she was home.

Optimus's situation could not have been more opposite. His home remained barren and the entire Decepticon Army closed in on him. He let out a sigh that he realized he'd been holding in. For the second time in his life, Optimus found himself uncertain of the future. His team… no… his friends departed to different corners of the Earth, and he was about to take the full brunt of Megatron's fury.

Optimus quickly put these feelings aside. The Autobots faced eradication once and Optimus comforted himself with the belief that his friends would prevail again. They had to. The last of the Primes raised the Star Saber and brought it down on the Space Bridge control panel and finally on the Space Bridge itself.

Up on the surface, things turned from bad to worse. Starscream forced Wheeljack to retreat and the Nemesis maneuvered into position over the Autobot base. A large beam weapon deployed from a ventral compartment and aimed straight down at the weapon charged for a few seconds before releasing a devastating beam that enveloped the base in a ball of flame.

Fowler witnessed the scene from his helicopter. "Damn." He swore. After the smoke cleared, the remaining Seekers disengaged and flew back to their respective warships. Though he seriously considered ramming his aircraft into the Nemesis just to spite Megatron, Fowler took the opportunity to fall back to Nellis Air Force Base.

Speaking of which, the Decepticon leader and Starscream touched down near the wreck were the Autobot base once stood. After spotting the Autobot emblem on the ground, Starscream smiled wide. "This is the place." He joked. "No Starscream. This _was_ the place." The two began to search the rubble for anything that might be useful. Not far off, hidden by twisted concrete and steel, Optimus Prime's hand jutted out from the ground.

* * *

After Jenny talked to her friends, she recorded a message in the privacy of her room.

"The time I spent with the Autobots will stay with me for the rest of my life. The friends I've made and the lessons I've learned taught me all over again what I'm fighting for in my dimension. Still, I can't wait to join them again and help them destroy Megatron's new fortress. Despite the long odds, I believe that the Autobots will survive this hardship, because they know the values of loyalty, teamwork, and most importantly: family. I am Jenny Wakeman. And I send this message to the Decepticons. Enjoy your victory, for it will be short lived."

**THE END**

**A/N: **So there you have it folks. Wow. This was such fun to write and, for me, fun to read. I'm going to put the sequel on hold for a while to focus on other priorities, but trust me, I will write it. In the meantime feel free to check out my other stories. I'll most likely continue Mark II in the coming weeks if you are interested. Thanks again for all your support and thank you to ImWithTheBand121 for tolerating my presence and proofreading my stories. Thank you for reading.


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